A joint operation by the Colombian National Army, the Colombian Aerospace Force, and the Office of the Attorney General was deployed against members of the Clan del Golfo in the rural area of Amalfi, in the Northeast of Antioquia.
The airstrike, initiated in the morning hours of July 11, aims to neutralize the “criminal capabilities” of the Roberto Vargas Gutiérrez structure, Jorge Iván Arboleda Garcés substructure, considered one of the active factions of this armed group.
The military offensive was launched as part of the strategy that seeks to strengthen security conditions in the region against the criminal actions of the outlaw group and reinforce the security of the civilian population in the region.
Reports published by various news outlets indicate that two alleged members may have been killed during the bombings; however, the official report from the authorities has not notified any casualties so far.
Information from the authorities points out that the operation in Amalfi corresponded to the ninth bombing directed against the armed group during the administration of Gustavo Petro which, according to statements by the Minister of Defense, Pedro Arnulfo Sánchez, has been the armed group most impacted by law enforcement.
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Defense Minister asserts that the Clan del Golfo has been the armed group most affected under the Petro administration
In fact, he said that military and police operations have allowed for the capture or neutralization of thousands of members of criminal structures throughout the country, with a particular emphasis on the recent bombings carried out in the department of Antioquia.
According to statements collected in a video released by the radio outlet, Pedro Sánchez pointed out that in the last four years, around 600,000 arrests have been made for various crimes, although the main focus has been directed at the so-called illegal organized armed groups.
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The minister specified: “During this government period, 16,371 members have been neutralized, of which 93% correspond to captures and 7% correspond to deaths during the course of a military operation”.
Colombia’s Minister of Defense, Pedro Arnulfo Sánchez, stated that the Clan del Golfo has been the illegal armed group with the most operations against it – credit Luis Jaime Acosta/Reuters
The Gulf Clan tops the list of the most affected organizations, accounting for 51% of those neutralized, according to Sánchez’s data. The minister also mentioned that other groups, such as the residual GAO, the dissident factions led by alias Mordisco and alias Calarcá, and the National Liberation Army (ELN), have been the subject of specific operations.
Regarding the ELN, Sánchez highlighted their responsibility for the forced displacement of more than thirty thousand people and the confinement of another sixty thousand in the Catatumbo region.
Regarding the tactics employed, the head of Defense underscored the legitimacy of the bombings against targets considered lawful. “Where we have concentrated the most has been in Antioquia, eight of the twenty-four bombings we have carried out. We also carried out, parallel to these twenty-four air strikes, one thousand six hundred and fifty combats. That is what we have now. It means that every twenty hours we have a combat, but we have had zero collateral damage in these twenty-four bombings,” maintained the outgoing minister.
One of the strengths of the Gulf Clan in Antioquia and Chocó is illegal mining – credit @PedroSanchezCol/X
For his part, he also confirmed the initiation of an official investigation following the release of audio recordings suggesting alleged agreements between members of the Government and the Clan del Golfo, formally known as the Gaitanist Army of Colombia (EGC), prior to the consolidation of the dialogue table in September 2025. The official warned that, if the veracity of the material is proven, it would constitute a serious crime.
During an interview with Caracol Radio, Sánchez pointed out that the Ministry of Defense’s legal team is evaluating the possibility of filing criminal complaints and declaring itself a victim of the alleged scheme.
“If true, that is a conspiracy to commit a crime. They would be conspiring against the nation, conspiring against the security of Colombians and therefore also against the Ministry of Defense itself”, the official stated.
