Drone Attacks in Colombia Rose 146% in Early 2026: What the Numbers Show
Drone attacks by armed groups in Colombia rose 146 percent in the first five months of 2026 compared with the same period in 2025, according to Colombia's Ombudsman's Office. Ombudsman Iris Marin shared the figures on Thursday, September 17, 2026, in the most complete official count so far of the threat from weaponized uncrewed aircraft systems, or drones flown without a pilot on board Al Jazeera.
Those attacks killed 21 people and wounded 145 others between January and May, including children. Civilians made up nearly a third of those killed or wounded. Homes, schools, petrol stations and infrastructure were hit.
Colombia's Defensoría del Pueblo recorded 121 drone attacks with explosive devices between January and May 2026. Data from the UN Mine Action Service cited in humanitarian reporting matches that count, with 121 armed drone incidents through May 2026, up 146 percent. Ethnic communities accounted for 49 percent of victims of those incidents through May UNICEF.
Year-by-year tallies show the climb. ACLED, which tracks political violence, recorded one drone attack event in Colombia in 2023, 38 in 2024, and 149 in 2025 The Guardian. In early 2026, Minister of Defense Pedro Sanchez reported 333 effective weaponized drone attacks against the public force in 2025. A separate UN assessment also counted 333 effective attacks with weaponized drones in 2025, a 445 percent increase from 61 incidents in 2024. Other humanitarian reporting describes attacks with weaponized drones as quadrupling between 2024 and 2025. Colombia had earlier recorded 264 attacks from unmanned drones loaded with explosives, and drone attacks between 2024 and 2025 left 15 soldiers dead Reuters. By 2025, almost all major armed groups in the country were using militarised drones.
The Colombian government announced a $1.68 billion project in January 2026 to develop an anti-drone shield, a network of sensors and weapons to find and stop hostile drones. Colombian military forces have used grenade-launching drones in recent months to counter armed fighters.
Colombian authorities blamed the ELN rebel group for a September 5, 2026 attack on a military post that reportedly included drones dropping explosives. The government reported three killed in that rebel attack on a military post. A guerrilla drone attack on a military garrison killed at least two soldiers and wounded five others AFP. In Tibú, the deaths of two adolescents and a new drone attack led the Defensoría to call for stronger protection of civilians. The Defensoría said a drone attack against radar in Candelaria violates international humanitarian law, the rules of war that protect civilians, and affects the safety of air operations. In Puerto López in Bajo Cauca, Antioquia, the Defensoría documented at least two confinement events, when residents are forced to stay in place, and five mass forced displacement events, when large groups are forced to flee, between January and May 2026. On February 26, 2026, the Defensoría issued an Early Warning of Imminence for El Peñol and El Tambo, Nariño, due to armed disputes and use of drones.
The broader context here is a shift from occasional improvised use to steady tactical use. Like hobby quadcopters refitted to drop small bombs, these commercial drones now strike fixed positions, target sensors such as radar, and pressure communities through confinement and displacement. The high share of casualties among ethnic communities and the hits on schools and civilian infrastructure point to a civilian protection crisis layered on a military defense problem.
Looking at what this means for Bogotá, the $1.68 billion counter-UAS program will test buying equipment, getting army, air force and police systems to work together, and setting rules for use over towns and cities. Defending radar sites, airfields and infrastructure takes different tools than defending moving patrols. The military's own use of grenade-launching drones also raises questions about doctrine, training, limiting civilian harm, and how the principles of distinction, separating fighters from civilians, and proportionality, avoiding excessive harm for the expected military gain, are applied by all sides. For aid groups, the mix of confinement, mass displacement and early warnings in Nariño, Catatumbo and Bajo Cauca points to continued limits on access even when attack counts change.
