Colombia: At least 19 killed in bomb attack

A bomb attack on Saturday left 19 dead in southwestern Colombia, an area with a strong guerrilla presence, just over a month before presidential elections are due to take place, the forensic authority said Sunday.

The attack was attributed by the government to rebels of the defunct FARC guerrillas, who did not embrace the 2016 peace deal. Leftist President Gustavo Petro referred to the dissidents as "terrorists" and ordered the security forces to double down on their pursuit.

In a statement published on X, Medicina Legal reported "19 bodies." An earlier toll had put the death toll at 14 and 38 wounded from the attack on a road in Cauca department.

A police source told AFP that there are missing persons that rescue teams are trying to locate. He assured that they are having difficulty in putting a figure on the number of victims due to the crossfire with dissidents in three police stations in Cauca.