In response to the extradition to the US of the drug kingpin “Otoniel”, the Gaitanist Self-Defence Forces of Colombia (AGC) declared an “armed strike” (shutdown) starting from 5 May and due to end on 10 May in the departments of Córdoba, Antioquia and Chocó, explicitly prohibiting all social, economic and educational events, resulting in alarming levels of violence.

All DG ECHO partners in Chocó, Córdoba and Antioquia have suspended their operations until the declared end of the strike and will further assess the security situation then.

The humanitarian situation in Chocó, with more than 45,000 people affected by confinement linked to the action of armed groups since the beginning of the year, has prompted a UN emergency fund allocation of USD 3 million which is to be distributed between the health, protection and food security sectors for urgent humanitarian assistance.

In addition, in the area of the Bajo Cauca (Antioquia), several communities have suffered this week from flooding, affecting close to 10,000 people.