It has been almost a week since Colombia, Panama, Venezuela, and Ecuador were jolted by a powerful earthquake. The epicenter of the August 10 earthquake was in San José del Palmar, in the Department of Chocó in Colombia, the country that has borne the brunt of the human and material losses. The earthquake measured 7.4 on the Richter scale and occurred at a depth of about 103 kilometers.

More than 280 people died as a result of the natural disaster, and thousands of homes were destroyed. In total, the Unit for Risk and Disaster Management (UNGRD) reported 127,608 homes affected, 26,392 destroyed, and nearly 200 buildings collapsed, affecting nearly 120,671 families.

The economic losses are also very high. According to some reports, total economic losses amount to about $9,570 million (nearly 2.1% of the South American country’s gross domestic product) illustrating the severity of the losses.

The UNGRD also reported that more than 4,000 people were injured and that 194 are still missing, making it highly likely that the death toll will rise in the coming weeks. It was also reported that approximately 355 people have been rescued.

Thousands of civilians, along with firefighters, members of the armed forces, police officers, and Colombian rescue teams, took to the streets to try to rescue as many people as possible. Typically, when natural disasters of this kind occur, various governments offer to send rescue teams and supplies to help better address the crisis.

However, the government of right-wing President De la Espriella, who had been in office for only a few hours, decided to reject most of the offers to send rescue teams, stating that Colombia had enough experts to handle the crisis – a decision that sparked both diplomatic and domestic controversy.

A few hours later, several members of the opposition speculated that the government actually only wanted assistance from governments aligned with its ideological stance, even though Foreign Minister Omar Bula himself said that was not the case. One of the critics was former presidential candidate Iván Cepeda, who argued that the aid the government accepts is “selective.”

However, although aid has been accepted from dozens of countries, only search-and-rescue teams from four countries have been granted permission to operate in Colombia: Israel, the United States, Colombia, and El Salvador. The government stated that the selection criteria were based solely on technical considerations, although several critics have argued that this is actually a matter of ideological discretion that should carry little weight in times of emergency.

Israeli forces in Colombia

Among them, the group that has likely drawn the most attention is the 82 Israeli soldiers who have arrived to assist in search-and-rescue operations in central and southwestern Colombia. “We will be stationed at various points throughout the city, coordinating with local authorities to enter the collapsed areas and, God willing, find survivors during the rescue efforts,” said Ronny Kaplan, a spokesperson for the Israeli forces.

Several opposition groups, including the Historic Pact, have criticized the presence of Israeli forces and have demanded clarification on “under what capacity they have come” – that is, whether as soldiers or as rescue workers – since, as Senator Cepeda stated, the Colombian Constitution requires the legislature to authorize the transit of foreign troops through Colombia, something that has not occurred.

In this regard, former President Gustavo Petro said on X: “If the Israeli soldiers who arrived in Colombia brought weapons rather than medicine and rescue supplies, then we are facing a deception. This is a military occupation of Colombian territory without the permission of the Senate of the Republic.”

These suspicions have been echoed by several social organizations, human rights advocates, and political leaders, who assert that Colombia does not need soldiers coming to provide technical and humanitarian assistance, but rather rescue workers of a different kind – such as those offered by several other countries.

For now, various nations continue to send aid to Colombia. The United Nations has joined these efforts, promising food assistance for 100,000 people affected by the August 10 earthquake.

Nils Grede, director of the World Food Program (WFP) in Colombia, said: “The solidarity shown immediately after the earthquake has been extraordinary … But we know from experience that recovery does not end when the initial wave of support subsides … We are committed to standing with the affected communities for as long as they need support.”

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