Fifteen Colombian civilians were killed today in central Boyaca department, a military spokesman said, blaming the slaughter on paramilitary forces of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC).
The victims were passengers of a bus travelling from the town of Sogamoso, 170 kilometers northeast of Bogota, to Labranzagrande, General Fredy Padilla de Leon said.
Six armed men on motorcycles intercepted the bus at a place called La Cinta, forced 17 passengers off the bus and later killed 15 of them, he said.
Though officials do not have hard data on the attackers, they believe paramilitary fighters operating in the region are responsible, Padilla said.
In a statement yesterday posted on its website, the AUC said it was adopting a strict code of conduct barring massacres and violations of human rights.
The new code was adopted during a recent national conference of the paramilitary group, the statement said. Its 8,000-some members have pledged a war to the death with leftist rebels in Colombia's 36-year civil war.
AFP