# Alleged rebel leader killed in Colombia as president targets armed groups

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/alleged-rebel-leader-killed-in-colombia-as-president-targets-armed-groups/
- Published: 2026-08-10T12:23:21+00:00
- Updated: 2026-08-10T12:48:52+00:00
- Original publisher: BBC World (publisher lean: Centre)
- Original article: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5yrljp9x9eo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss
- Topics: Government, Politics, World

## Key points

- Colombian forces killed alleged rebel leader "El ruso" and five others
- New president de la Espriella vows tough crackdown on armed groups
- Bombings hit back within a day; US pledges $1bn in security aid

## Summary

A man accused of leading a dissident rebel faction was killed alongside five other alleged armed group members in a Colombian military operation, days after new president Abelardo de la Espriella was sworn in with a pledge to crack down hard on illegal armed groups. The killing of Hernando Forero Mosquera, known as "El ruso", marks an early test of de la Espriella's combative "narco-terrorism" strategy, which he has framed as a sharp break from predecessor Gustavo Petro's failed "total peace" negotiation approach.

Forero allegedly led Frente 28, one of several dissident factions that emerged after the Farc's main body signed a 2016 peace deal, with holdout groups now largely funding themselves through cocaine trafficking and illegal mining. The operation in Meta province also killed three other alleged Frente 28 members, while a separate raid in Antioquia killed two suspected members of the Gulf Clan; de la Espriella said the action sent "a clear and powerful message" to armed groups. Rebel defiance followed swiftly, with a car bomb injuring two guards in Cauca and a police officer killed by a drone-dropped explosive in Cesar. The US, whose president Donald Trump backed de la Espriella's campaign, pledged $1bn (£740m) in security assistance and welcomed Colombia into its "Shield of the Americas" anti-trafficking alliance.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.