Medellín, Colombia – There were 35 massacres in Colombia in the first three months of 2026, making it the most violent quarter in a decade, according to the Institute of Peace and Development Studies (Indepaz).
The Colombian NGO’s figures revealed that 133 people had died in the massacres, which occurred across 34 municipalities in 17 departments.
The grim figures come as Colombia faces a surge in violence related to its long-running armed conflict, almost ten years after a historic peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebel group.
The massacres claimed the lives of 74 men, 16 women, and 17 children. 40 of the victims have not been identified.
The first massacre of the year, in which three women were killed, was committed in Santander de Quilichao, Cauca, on January 3. The single most violent attack took place in El Retorno, Guaviare, where 26 people were killed on January 16.
This makes this year’s first quarter the most violent in the last ten years, during which Indepaz has recorded the deaths of nearly 3,000 people in over 700 different massacres.
On the back of the peace accords signed in November 2016 between Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and the FARC, 2017 was the least violent year, registering 33 massacres in total.
However, following the election of Iván Duque in 2018, yearly records of massacres increased from 39 in the first year of his presidency to 96 in 2021.
Under the current Gustavo Petro administration, figures have remained at similar levels, oscillating between the highest point of 94 cases in 2023 and 76 cases in 2024. Petro’s policy of Paz Total (Total Peace) that has sought to counter violence by negotiating with armed groups has had mixed results.
The period of 2021 to 2025 observed an average of 303 deaths annually, an increase on the average of 201 deaths each year in the preceding five year period. Even the most violent periods of the last decade did not register as many quarterly cases as 2026 has witnessed so far. The first quarter of 2020 recorded 17 massacres, under half of this year’s equivalent figure.
In the last decade, 1,657 men, 285 women, and at least 133 children have been killed. Valle del Cauca was the worst affected department with 62 massacres resulting in 215 deaths, followed by Cauca which saw 58 massacres and 200 deaths.
The surge in violence has come at a crucial moment in Colombian politics with presidential elections set to take place on May 31. While Petro’s possible Historic Pact successor, Iván Cepeda, looks to continue the Paz total policy, other candidates have promised tougher military measures against armed groups.
Featured image credit: Policía Nacional de los colombianos via Flickr
