Violence between armed groups in the Catatumbo region has displaced more than 32,000 people, rights groups estimate.

Colombia's President Gustavo Petro has declared emergency powers to restore order in the coca-growing Catatumbo region amid escalating violence.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro says he will declare an emergency over the guerrilla attacks in the northeast that have killed dozens of people and forced thousands to flee.

Francisco de Miranda, considered to be the precursor of Venezuela’s independence, stitched the country’s first flag in Jacmel and set sail from the port city. A decade later, South American liberator Simón Bolívar launched his successful movement from Jacmel’s shores.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Friday issued a decree that gives him emergency powers to respond to an outbreak of deadly violence between rival armed groups in the north-eastern Catatumbo region.