The history of Colombia includes its settlement by indigenous peoples and the establishment of agrarian societies, notably the Muisca Confederation, Quimbaya Civilization, and Tairona Chiefdoms. The Spanish arrived in 1499 and initiated a period of annexation and colonization, ultimately creating the Viceroyalty of New Granada, with its capital at Bogotá. Independence from Spain was won in 1819, but by 1830 the resulting "Gran Colombia" Federation was dissolved. What is now Colombia and Panama emerged as the Republic of New Granada. The new nation experimented with federalism as the Granadine Confederation (1858) and then the United States of Colombia (1863) before the Republic of Colombia was finally declared in 1886. A period of constant political violence ensued, and Panama seceded in 1903. Since the 1960s, the country has suffered from an asymmetric low-intensity armed conflict which escalated in the 1990s but decreased from 2005 onward. The legacy of Colombia's history has resulted in a rich cultural heritage, and Colombia's geographic and climatic variations have contributed to the development of strong regional identities.
The National Liberation Army is a guerrilla insurgency group involved in the continuing Colombian conflict, which has existed in Colombia since 1964. The ELN advocates a composite communist ideology of Marxism–Leninism and liberation theology. In 2013, it was estimated that the ELN forces consisted of between 1,380 and 3,000 guerrillas. According to former ELN national directorate member Felipe Torres, one-fifth of ELN supporters have taken up arms. The ELN has been classified as a terrorist organization by the governments of Colombia, the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and the European Union.
The Popular Liberation Army is a Colombian anti-revisionist Marxist–Leninist guerrilla group created in 1967. Most of its former members demobilized in 1991, forming the Esperanza, Paz y Libertad party, but a dissident faction, formerly led by Megateo, known as "Los Pelusos", continue operating. On June 22, 1994, Francisco Caraballo, First Secretary of the Communist Party of Colombia (M–L) and Commander in Chief of the People's Liberation Army, was arrested along with his wife, son and several other EPL members. Víctor Ramon Navarro Cervano, alias "Megateo," the leader of the last faction of the Popular Liberation Army (EPL), was killed in a military and police operation in Norte de Santander department in 2015. On December 15, 2016, Megateo's successor Guillermo León Aguirre, alias “David León,” was captured in Medellín. 40 days after the capture of David León, the body of his successor Jade Navarro Barbaso, alias “Caracho,” was still not found after disappearing.
The Simón Bolívar Guerrilla Coordinating Board was an umbrella group of guerrilla organizations in Colombia from 1987 to the early 1990s. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, the 19th of April Movement, the National Liberation Army, the Popular Liberation Army, Workers Revolutionary Party and the Movimiento Armado Quintin Lame were all members of the CGSB. Subsequently, the FARC-EP and the ELN only continued in the Coordinator until 1994 to continue the armed struggle separately, after the M-19, the Quintin Lame, the EPL, and the WRPC all dissolved in the early 1990s.
Tibú is a municipality and town of Colombia located in the department of Norte de Santander, in the northeast of the country, on the border with Venezuela and on the banks of the Tibú River. It is the 160th most populated town of Colombia, and the 6th in the department after Cúcuta, Ocaña, Villa del Rosario, Los Patios and Pamplona. It has an airport, and is connected by national road with Cúcuta, Ocaña and El Tarra.
This is a timeline of events related to the Colombian conflict.
Colombia–Venezuela relations refers to the diplomatic relations between the South American neighboring countries of Colombia and Venezuela. The relationship has developed since the early 16th century, when Spanish colonizers created the Province of Santa Marta and the Province of New Andalucia. The countries share a history of achieving their independence under Simón Bolívar and becoming one nation—the Gran Colombia—which dissolved in the 19th century. Since then, the overall relationship between the two countries has oscillated between cooperation and bilateral struggle.
Norte de Santander is a department of northeastern Colombia. It is in the north of the country, bordering Venezuela. Its capital is Cúcuta, one of the country's major cities.
The Bahía Portete massacre was a massacre in the Colombian town of Bahía Portete, in the Department of La Guajira on April 16, 2004. It was perpetrated by paramilitary groups of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) Wayuu Counter-Insurgency Bloc led by alias "Jorge 40" killing 12 people and the disappearance of one. Some 600 people were displaced against their will and took refuge in neighboring Venezuela.
Los Rastrojos is a Colombian drug cartel and paramilitary group engaged in the Colombian armed conflict. The group was formed by Norte del Valle cartel capo Wilber Varela, alias "Jabón" and one of his right-hand men, "Diego Rastrojo", around 2004 when Varela fell out with fellow-capo Diego Leon Montoya, alias "Don Diego". The group became independent after the murder of its main founder in Venezuela in 2008 and at its height was one of the most important drug trafficking organizations in Colombia.
The Barco oil concession was one of the main concessions in Colombia during the early development of its petroleum industry, the other being the De Mares concession. Oil was first found in the Norte de Santander department near the border with Venezuela in 1905, but development did not start until 1936. A joint venture between the Texas Corporation and Socony-Vacuum sank the wells and built a 263-mile (423 km) pipeline across the mountains and through swampy jungle to the Caribbean coast at Coveñas. Workers were harassed by Motilone people defending their territory, and several died. The concession began operation in 1939 and continued into the 1960s, when it began to be depleted. Other fields in the region are still productive.
Presidential elections were held in Colombia on 27 May 2018. As no candidate received a majority of the vote, the second round of voting was held on 17 June. Incumbent president Juan Manuel Santos was ineligible to seek a third term. Iván Duque, a senator, defeated Gustavo Petro, former mayor of Bogotá, in the second round. Duque's victory made him one of the youngest individuals elected to the presidency, aged 42. His running mate, Marta Lucía Ramírez, was the first woman elected to the vice presidency in Colombian history.
On 17 January 2019, a vehicle was driven into the General Santander National Police Academy in Bogotá, Colombia. The truck forced its way into the facility, hit a wall and detonated, killing 22 people and injuring 68 others. Suicide attacks are unusual in Colombia. The car contained about 80 kilograms (180 lb) of pentolite. It was the deadliest attack on the Colombian capital since the 2003 El Nogal Club bombing and the first terrorist attack on the capital since the 2017 Centro Andino bombing. The National Liberation Army (ELN) accepted responsibility for the attack and justified it as a response to the bombings made by the Colombian government during the unilateral ceasefire.
The Catatumbo campaign has been an ongoing period of strategic violence between militia faction groups in the Catatumbo region of Colombia and Venezuela since January 2018. It is an extension of the war on drugs and developed after the Colombian peace process of 2016. The existence of the war was officially announced in August 2019 after a Human Rights Watch (HRW) investigation. Colombian media reports that the war has directly affected an estimated 145,000 people, with the HRW estimating this at 300,000.
The 2021 Apure clashes started on 21 March 2021 in the south of the Páez Municipality, in the Apure state in Venezuela, specifically in La Victoria, a location bordering with Colombia, between guerrilla groups identified as Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC-EP) dissidents and the Venezuelan government led by Nicolás Maduro.
Gustavo Petro's term as the 34th president of Colombia began with his inauguration on 7 August 2022. Petro who previously served as mayor of Bogotá, took office after his victory in the 2022 presidential election over the self-proclaimed "anti-corruption leader" Rodolfo Hernández. Petro took office amid the political shadow of his predecessor, an economic crisis and increased political polarization.
Colombia currently has one of the highest populations of internally displaced people (IDPS), at a total amount of over 6.8 million. The majority of IDPS have been displaced due to conflict and violence while others have been displaced due to climate change. Primary contributors to violence include political violence and civil war as well as gang violence. Despite a 2016 peace agreement, political dissident groups have persisted in Colombia, contributing to violence rate similar to those prior to the peace agreement. The Venezuelan refugee crisis has contributed to economic strains and aid requirements in Colombia. Colombia has received aid from organizations like the UNHCR or USAID to help manage humanitarian needs.
List of predicted and scheduled events of 2025 in Colombia.
National Liberation Army 
