"A specialized criminal court judge sentenced members of the self-proclaimed Central Command (Coce, for its Spanish acronym) of the ELN (National Liberation Army) and two other leaders of that guerrilla group for the abductions of seven journalists and two media workers that occurred in the Catatumbo region, in Norte de Santander, between 2016 and 2017.
[...]
As part of the investigation, led by a prosecutor from the Specialized Directorate against Human Rights Violations, it was determined that the detentions, as well as other acts of violence and intimidation against the journalists and their teams, were carried out under orders from the top leaders of the illegal armed group. According to the Prosecutor's Office, the objective was to exert territorial control in the municipality of El Tarra and surrounding areas, as well as to restrict the work of the press."
