Palace of Justice siege

Common card · No. 200418

The Palace of Justice siege was an attack carried out in Bogotá, Colombia, on November 6–7, 1985, in which a guerrilla commando of the 19th of April Movement (M-19) took over the Palace of Justice, housing the Supreme Court and the Council of State. The guerrillas held roughly 350 people hostage, among them Supreme Court justices, councilors of state, judicial staff, employees, and visitors. The building stood on the north side of the Plaza de Bolívar, facing the National Capitol, seat of Congress, and one block from the Casa de Nariño, the president's residence. The group, calling themselves the "Iván Marino Ospina Company" after an M-19 commander who had been killed by the Colombian military on 28 August 1985, intended to hold a trial against President Belisario Betancur. Hours later, the military initiated a raid. The siege lasted 28 hours and left 101 people dead, including 11 of 25 Supreme Court justices. The Minister of Government at the time, Jaime Castro, described the event as...

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