(MENAFN- Gulf Times) A car bomb exploded at a police academy in Colombia's capital Bogota yesterday, killing at least eight people and wounding about 10 other people, authorities disclosed.
The bomb went off in the General Santander Police School in the south of the capital, Mayor Enrique Penalosa told reporters.
Early images from the City TV station showed ambulances moving around the area close to the school in the south of Bogota.
The defence ministry put the death toll at eight.
Authorities did not immediately say if the dead and wounded were police or civilians.
Fanny Contreras, the armed forces' health inspector, told local radio the car 'entered (the school compound) suddenly, almost hitting the police and then there was the explosion.
Colombian President Ivan Duque said he was returning to the capital from the west of the country, where he had been attending a meeting on security, and had ordered security forces to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice.
'All Colombians reject terrorism and are united to confront it, he said on Twitter.
Vowing to 'bring to justice those responsible for the attack, Duque added: 'COLOMBIA is sad but will not bow to violence.
There was no word on who might be behind the explosion.
Colombia grappled for decades with a civil war but the worst of the violence ended with a peace agreement with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) in 2016.
Images on social media showed the remains of a vehicle in flames in the parking area of the police school, and emergency responders at the scene.
MENAFN1701201900670000ID1097990592
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.