trapped between armed groups, cut off from help, waiting for order
En las alturas de la Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, comunidades indígenas llevan semanas atrapadas entre dos organizaciones criminales que disputan territorio, rutas y recursos que nunca les pertenecieron. Desde mediados de febrero, los enfrentamientos entre el Clan del Golfo y Los Pachencas han cobrado al menos tres vidas indígenas, dejado a una niña herida y a dos mujeres desaparecidas en la comunidad de Serancua, en el municipio de Aracataca. El Estado colombiano ha respondido con un despliegue militar, pero la pregunta que pesa sobre las montañas es si la fuerza llegará a tiempo para abrir paso a la ayuda humanitaria antes de que el silencio se vuelva irreversible.
- Desde el 17 de febrero, combates intermitentes en torno al Cerro Azul han convertido la comunidad indígena de Serancua en una zona de guerra que sus habitantes no eligieron.
- El confinamiento es casi absoluto: organizaciones humanitarias bloqueadas, autoridades judiciales sin acceso, y una población sin alimentos ni medicamentos mientras el fuego cruzado continúa.
- Dos mujeres permanecen desaparecidas, un niño resultó herido y al menos tres miembros de la comunidad han muerto, aunque el número total de heridos sigue sin confirmarse.
- Los compromisos firmados semanas atrás por ambos grupos armados ante el gobierno colombiano —en los que prometían respetar el derecho internacional humanitario— parecen haberse evaporado ante los intereses territoriales en juego.
- El Ejército Nacional desplegó tropas con apoyo aéreo de la Fuerza Aeroespacial y la Policía Nacional para recuperar el control del área y permitir el ingreso de la Fiscalía y las agencias humanitarias.
- La operación militar avanza, pero la comunidad sigue esperando que el orden sea suficiente para que la ayuda finalmente cruce las montañas.
En las cumbres de la Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, en el remoto municipio de Aracataca, la comunidad indígena de Serancua lleva semanas atrapada en un conflicto que no le pertenece. Desde mediados de febrero, el Clan del Golfo y las Autodefensas Conquistadoras de la Sierra Nevada —conocidas como Los Pachencas— se han enfrentado repetidamente en torno a un lugar llamado Cerro Azul, dejando a su paso al menos tres indígenas muertos, una niña herida y dos mujeres desaparecidas.
El cerco es casi total. Las organizaciones humanitarias no pueden entrar, las autoridades judiciales tampoco, y la población permanece sin acceso a alimentos ni medicamentos. La defensora del Pueblo, Iris Marín, emitió una declaración urgente exigiendo un corredor humanitario —una petición básica bajo el derecho internacional humanitario que ambos grupos habían prometido respetar formalmente durante negociaciones con el gobierno colombiano apenas semanas antes. Esos compromisos parecen haberse disuelto ante la magnitud de los intereses territoriales en disputa.
Ante el deterioro de la situación, el mayor general Royer Gómez Herrera anunció el reposicionamiento de tropas del Ejército Nacional con apoyo de la Policía y la Fuerza Aeroespacial. Helicópteros fueron desplegados para consolidar el control del área y abrir condiciones para que la Fiscalía y las agencias de ayuda puedan ingresar. La operación continúa, y sobre ella pesa una sola pregunta: si llegará a tiempo para que la ayuda alcance a quienes esperan, sin haber pedido nunca ser parte de esta guerra.
In the high reaches of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, in the remote municipality of Aracataca in Colombia's Magdalena department, indigenous communities have been trapped for weeks in the crossfire of a territorial war they did not start. Since mid-February, armed groups have clashed repeatedly in the mountains above the Serancua indigenous community—a succession of firefights that have left at least three indigenous people dead, a child wounded, and two women unaccounted for. The combatants are members of the Clan del Golfo, a major criminal organization, and their rivals, the Autodefensas Conquistadoras de la Sierra Nevada, known locally as Los Pachencas. The fighting has intensified around a location called Cerro Azul, and the violence has effectively sealed off the indigenous population from the outside world.
The confinement is near-total. Humanitarian organizations cannot enter. Judicial authorities cannot reach the area. Food, medicine, and assistance are blocked. The defensora del Pueblo, Iris Marín, issued an urgent public statement describing the situation: successive, intermittent combat has trapped the indigenous population, with two women missing, at least one man confirmed dead, and a child injured. She called for the armed groups to permit a humanitarian corridor—a basic request under international humanitarian law, which both groups had formally committed to respecting just weeks earlier during negotiations with the Colombian government.
Those commitments appear to have dissolved. In February, during official dialogue spaces with the national government, both the Clan del Golfo and Los Pachencas had signed agreements pledging to uphold the laws of armed conflict and protect civilian populations. The current fighting suggests those promises have been abandoned or superseded by the territorial stakes at play in the Sierra Nevada.
Confronted with the deteriorating situation, the Colombian military mobilized. Major General Royer Gómez Herrera, commander of the National Army, announced a repositioning of troops supported by the National Police and the Colombian Aerospace Force. Helicopters were deployed to consolidate control of the area and create conditions for the Prosecutor's Office and humanitarian agencies to enter. Gómez Herrera described the operation as ongoing, with forces working to secure the territory while investigations and aid delivery could begin.
The toll on the indigenous community is still being assessed. Military reports confirm three deaths among community members, one injured child, and several other wounded whose exact number remains unconfirmed. Two women are missing. The Serancua community, situated in the upper reaches of the Sierra Nevada, has become a casualty of a conflict between criminal organizations fighting for control of territory, resources, and trafficking routes. The indigenous population—caught between armed groups, cut off from help, and waiting for state forces to restore enough order for aid to flow—represents the human cost of a war that has nothing to do with them. The military operation continues, and the question now is whether the deployment will succeed in opening the territory to humanitarian access before the situation deteriorates further.
Notable Quotes
A succession of intermittent combat between the Clan del Golfo and Los Pachencas has confined the indigenous population, with two women missing, one man dead, and a child injured. A humanitarian corridor is urgently needed.— Iris Marín, defensora del Pueblo
Troops are being repositioned with police and aerospace force support to consolidate the area and allow the Prosecutor's Office and humanitarian assistance to reach affected people.— Major General Royer Gómez Herrera, Colombian Army commander
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does the military deployment matter if the fighting is between two criminal groups?
Because without state presence, there's no one to enforce the humanitarian law both groups supposedly agreed to follow. The military creates the conditions for aid workers and prosecutors to actually reach people who are trapped and injured.
The groups signed agreements just weeks before. What changed?
Territory. Control. The agreements were made in a moment of negotiation, but on the ground, the incentives shifted. When armed groups see an opportunity to seize or hold strategic ground, those commitments often evaporate.
Two women are missing. Is there a specific fear about what happens to civilians in these situations?
The source doesn't specify, but yes—in armed conflict zones, missing persons, especially women, carry a particular weight. The defensora del Pueblo named them specifically because their absence is a distinct harm, separate from the dead and wounded.
The helicopters and air support—does that guarantee the military will succeed?
It improves the odds, but no. The terrain is mountainous and remote. The armed groups know the area. Success depends on whether the military can establish enough control quickly enough to prevent the groups from simply withdrawing deeper into the mountains.
What happens to the Serancua community if the military does secure the area?
They get access to aid, medical care, and investigation. But they remain in a territory that two criminal organizations consider valuable. Security is temporary unless something larger shifts in how these groups operate.