15-Year-Old Attempts to Assassinate Colombian Presidential Candidate

Colombian presidential candidate Miguel Uribe remains in critical condition after being shot in the head at close range during a public rally in Bogotá’s Modelia neighbourhood on Saturday. The 39-year-old conservative senator underwent emergency brain surgery and has shown minimal response to medical interventions, according to ABC News.

Reports are that the attack was carried out by a 15-year-old suspect now in custody. Videos circulated on social media show the gunman firing at Uribe from just metres away. The Associated Press reported that the teenager was injured during the arrest and is being treated in a separate clinic.

“It feels like we’re going back to the 1990s,” said Walter Jimenez, a lawyer who joined hundreds outside the hospital on Sunday. He was referring to a violent era when drug cartels and rebel groups carried out killings of judges, journalists, and presidential candidates without consequence.

President Gustavo Petro condemned the attack, warning against political exploitation, but has also come under fire for his heated rhetoric.

In a message on X on Monday, Petro revealed Uribe’s security team was “strangely” reduced from seven to three bodyguards on the day of the attack.