Colombia's hardline president Abelardo De La Espriella has drawn outrage after posting a video in which he walks through rows of white body bags he says held the corpses of 23 'neutralised' guerrillas.
Key facts
- Colombian President Abelardo De La Espriella posted a video showing rows of white body bags on Thursday.
- He said the bags contained the corpses of 23 'neutralised' guerrillas.
- De La Espriella took power last month vowing 'all-out war' against illegal armed groups.
- The Guardian reported the footage provoked outrage.
Colombia’s hardline president, Abelardo De La Espriella, has provoked outrage after posting a video on social media in which he strides through rows of white body bags that he says contained the corpses of 23 ‘neutralised’ guerrillas, according to the Guardian.
De La Espriella took power last month vowing ‘all-out war’ against illegal armed groups. He published the footage on Thursday in an apparent attempt to demonstrate that he was fulfilling that pledge, the Guardian reported.
The Guardian described the footage as provoking outrage, framing it within what it characterised as bellicose and performative far-right politics continuing to spread across the Americas.
The video shows the president walking through the rows of body bags, presenting them as evidence of his campaign against illegal armed groups in the country.
The publication of such footage by a sitting head of state marks a striking public assertion of the president’s stated war on guerrilla organisations since he assumed office.
Why it matters
A head of state publicly displaying images of killed combatants signals a hardening of state security policy and raises questions about accountability and human rights. The Guardian frames the incident as part of a wider spread of combative right-wing politics across the Americas, making it a bellwether for the region.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Abelardo De La Espriella?
He is Colombia's hardline president, who took power last month vowing 'all-out war' against illegal armed groups, according to the Guardian.
What did the video show?
According to the Guardian, it showed the president walking through rows of white body bags that he said contained the corpses of 23 'neutralised' guerrillas.
When was the video posted?
The president published the footage on Thursday, the Guardian reported.