'Donkey bomb' kills soldier in Colombia. Here's what happened

A bomb attached to a donkey exploded in northwest Colombia on Wednesday, killing a soldier and injuring two others. The attack took place in Valdivia in Colombia's Antioquia department; the authorities attributed it to the ELN, a left-wing extremist group. The conflict-torn South American country faces its worst violence in a decade, with the government suspending peace talks with the group.

The peace talks were stopped by the government after it blamed ELN for over 100 deaths in raids near the Venezuelaborder. Since then, the left group has intensified its attacks on the country's security forces.

Antioquia governor Andres Julian Rendon announced the attack in a post on X, saying one officer was killed and two were injured.

The attackers strapped the donkey with explosives and sent it toward a group of soldiers, he added.

With the stated goal of achieving "total peace" after decades of conflict, leftist President Gustavo Petro took office in 2022 and reopened peace talks with an array of armed groups.

Colombia has enjoyed almost a decade of relative peace since the signing of a deal in 2016 led to the disarmament of its biggest rebel army, the FARC.

Yet pockets of the country are still controlled by assorted left-wing guerrillas, right-wing paramilitaries, and drug cartels vying for control of narcotics production, illegal mining, and trafficking routes, reported AFP.

During Petro's term, observers say armed groups financed by the cocaine trade have only grown stronger.