Operation Estrella

That happened on July 2, 2001, with the ELN in a minefield. In the rural area of Ciprés, near the town of San Francisco, Antioquia. The operation Estrella was a short operation that lasted about a month and a half or so.

We were doing what is called search and control. So, it was time to make a stop to start over the next day, and in a small tree, here, as you can see, there is a little tent here, here another little tent, we were going to camp there.

It was already getting dark and that was a mountainous zone, many ridges, and many hills. Here we found that plateau. Then, we made a stop to camp and the guy that is over there, Gomez, went to make his hut, his little tent. And, in the stump of the tree where he went to tie the hammock they had buried a land mine. Then, at once, boom, he blew his little foot…

That made me sad, we were very close, that is, whatever happened to him, always would affect us…