Colombian president to challenge court orders against his security policy

Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella said Sunday he will challenge court orders blocking his hardline security policy.

De la Espriella has declared war on Colombia’s myriad drug trafficking guerrilla groups, with his policy backed by US military support.

Since taking office last month, the right-wing leader has faced a string of legal setbacks.

A judge ordered De la Espriella’s government to suspend bombings of guerrillas if intelligence indicated that minors were present.

An earlier court ruling halted the spraying of coca crops with a herbicide called glyphosate, which is linked to cancer in humans.

Another ruling ordered the president to hide graphic social media videos that appeared to show him walking among the bodies of alleged criminals.

“Judicial decisions are to be respected, and existing orders must be obeyed… but that does not mean giving up the right to challenge them,” De la Espriella said in an address.

Colombia is the world’s largest cocaine producer and is grappling with its worst violence in a decade.

The country has joined the Shield of the Americas, US President Donald Trump’s anti-cartel alliance of Latin American countries, including Argentina, Ecuador and El Salvador.