By AFP and Entorno | 2025-08-07

BOGOTA -- Colombian authorities have identified the guerrilla dissident group Segunda Marquetalia as the likely mastermind behind the June assassination attempt on presidential candidate Miguel Uribe.

The 39-year-old senator, a rising figure on the political right, remains in intensive care nearly two months after the attack, still reliant on a ventilator.

The group, led by notorious former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) commander Iván Márquez, formed after the 2016 peace deal when some former combatants returned to arms. According to military intelligence, Segunda Marquetalia now commands over 2,000 fighters.

"All signs point to Segunda Marquetalia being involved in determining the attack," said police director Carlos Fernando Triana at a news briefing on August 6. "But the investigation is ongoing."

Gunmen opened fire on Uribe during a campaign event in a working-class Bogotá neighborhood on June 7.

Authorities have arrested six suspects, including the alleged shooter, a 15-year-old boy, and Elder José Arteaga Hernández, known as "El Costeño," who allegedly coordinated logistics for the attack.

Officials consider Arteaga a key figure in identifying those who ordered the hit.

In recent weeks, Uribe's family celebrated small improvements in his condition. His sister, María Carolina Hoyos, called his ongoing recovery a "miracle," noting his entry into a neurorehabilitation process.

The attack has revived painful memories in a country scarred by decades of political violence. During the 1980s and 1990s, targeted killings of presidential candidates and opposition figures destabilized Colombia's fragile democracy.

President Gustavo Petro's government began peace talks with Segunda Marquetalia in Venezuela in mid-2024. However, negotiations stalled amid mutual distrust and lack of progress.

Intelligence sources say Márquez and his second-in-command, alias Zarco Aldinever, may be dead, though this suspicion remains unconfirmed.

The group may be using high-profile attacks to boost its political leverage, Laura Bonilla, an analyst at the Peace and Reconciliation Foundation (PARES), said.

Speaking to Blu Radio, she suggested Segunda Marquetalia might aim to destabilize the government, project power or strengthen territorial control through fear and chaos.

With Uribe considered a leading conservative contender for the 2026 presidential race, the implications of the attack stretch far beyond a single candidacy; they strike at the heart of Colombia's democratic process.