Videos capturing a march of the communist guerrilla ELN together with the local population in the northeast of the country, San Pablo, North Santander, went viral on Colombian social media. According to local reports, the participants bid farewell to the recently fallen ELN (National Liberation Army) combatant alias Tigre.
Currently, the ELN and the Colombian state are in a year-long ceasefire as part of negotiation talks. However, this does not apply to the guerrilla’s battles with Colombia’s powerful right-wing paramilitaries. The self-described Marxist ELN is Colombia’s largest left-wing guerrilla movement, with 6,000 estimated members.
The talks between Colombia’s first left-wing president, Gustavo Petro, and the political-military group mark a historic turning point in the relationship between the two warring parties. Previous negotiations have already secured humanitarian aid for those affected by the war, the release of some imprisoned guerrilla fighters, and more.
