57 soldiers who had been detained by locals in the southern Cauca region throughout the weekend have been released by the Colombian military.
On Tuesday, Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez declared that the operation, known as Operation Justice, was executed without a single gunshot.
Twenty people were apprehended during the mission, he revealed.
According to the DAILY POST, groups of civilians apparently acting on orders from the EMC (Estado Mayor Central), a potent breakaway unit of the former FARC guerrilla group, overran and imprisoned the soldiers.
The EMC is heavily involved in cocaine production and trafficking and maintains strong influence in the rural, mountainous regions of Cauca.
Sánchez denounced the soldiers’ seizure as a “kidnapping” orchestrated by the EMC, saying the group had instructed locals to prevent the military from removing a suspected rebel arrested on Saturday.
According to General Erick Rodríguez of the Colombian Army, the initial standoff began when more than 100 people surrounded a military unit attempting to airlift the detainee out of the area.
The following day, a second military unit was also surrounded and detained by an even larger crowd.
Locals in crisis areas frequently hold soldiers in protest, but this incident’s scope—involving 57 military personnel—was unusual.
In the past, humanitarian organizations have usually negotiated the release of captured security forces.
However, the captors this time rejected any kind of compromise, so the military sent in heavily armed reinforcements.
In addition to freeing the soldiers, the ensuing operation resulted in the arrest of 20 people thought to be working for the EMC.
Because local inhabitants heavily depend on coca growing, Cauca continues to be one of Colombia’s most unstable regions, where official presence is frequently viewed with animosity.
According to estimates from the Colombian military, more than 90% of the local population makes their living from coca, the raw ingredient used to make cocaine.
The area is also beset by a number of armed gangs that control drug trafficking routes, blackmail local farmers, and mine illegally, making it more difficult for the government to reestablish lawful economic activity and security.
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