‘All hell broke loose’: Colombia rethinks ‘total peace’ plan as violence grips north

With an ex-guerrilla as president, many hoped for an end to a 60-year war that has killed 450,000 people. But as rebels and cartels vie for control of the drug trade, many fear peace will never come

Karina García* has lost count of the waves of violence that have swept through her small town in north-east Colombia. But the latest fighting has shocked the rights activist. “Before, being a woman offered you some protection. You had to do something serious to get killed,” she says.

García fled the countryside when armed young men started going from house to house last month searching for civilians deemed sympathetic to rival groups. “Now, the slightest accusation or tiniest thing is enough for you to end up dead,” she says. “These guys really do not care about the pain of the people.”

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