Blast at Colombian police station wounds 13

By Jorge Di Filippo

CARACAS, Venezuela (AA) - An explosion early Monday at a police station in Cucuta, Colombia left at least 13 people wounded, said officials

Police said the blast was caused by “criminals” who left an improvised explosive device (IED) at the station, which is located near Colombia’s border with Venezuela.

“The criminals left an improvised explosive device under one of the chairs of the street furniture," said the commander of the Cucuta Metropolitan Police, Gen. Oscar Moreno.

Moreno said the incident occurred during a shift change of personnel.

"We have damage at our facility. Likewise, the personnel that left and those that entered during the change of shift were affected," he added.

Moreno did not blame any particular criminal group for the attack.

Several criminal organizations operate in Cucuta as the city is on the border between Colombia and Venezuela, an area that has long been used for drug trafficking and other illicit activities.

This is also not the first explosion in Cucuta this year.

In June, a car bomb at a military base in Cucuta wounded 44 people, including US soldiers who were there to train Colombian military personnel.

The border between Venezuela and Colombia was also the scene of months of heavy clashes between the Venezuelan military and irregular groups from Colombia.

The clashes left causalities on both sides of the border and over 5,000 Venezuelan residents were displaced to the Colombian city of Arauquita.