Colombia’s National Police extradited five Colombian nationals to the United States on August 6, 2026, handing them over to US federal authorities in connection with investigations into drug trafficking, money laundering and transnational organized crime.

The five men were delivered by officers from the Dirección de Investigación Criminal e Interpol (DIJIN) and transported under security escort on a flight accompanied by the US Marshals Service. The extraditions followed requests from US courts and investigations involving alleged cocaine trafficking, financial operations and international arms networks.

“This extradition represents a decisive blow against networks involved in drug trafficking, money laundering and crimes against collective security operating in the region.” – Policía Nacional de Colombia

Alleged arms-for-cocaine network

Among those extradited was Wilmar Cortés Hurtado, who is wanted by the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia on drug trafficking and criminal conspiracy charges.

Wisam Nagib Kherfan Okde and Alirio Rafael Quintero Quintero were also handed over to US authorities. Colombian investigators accuse the pair of leading a criminal organization involved in money laundering and international arms trafficking.

According to the Colombian government, investigators allege that the organization used connections with members of the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria to divert military weapons. Those weapons were allegedly subsequently routed to structures of the Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN) in exchange for cocaine shipments between 2024 and 2025.

The investigation also alleges that cryptocurrency and complex financial transactions in countries such as Ghana and Morocco were used to facilitate money laundering connected to drug trafficking organizations and terrorist groups.

The allegations have not been established as findings of guilt, and the defendants will face proceedings in the United States.

Cocaine trafficking and international routes

Helmer Hurtado Hurtado, also wanted by the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, was extradited on drug trafficking and criminal conspiracy charges connected to an international narcotics investigation.

Jacob Estenyer Jory Salazar was also among the five. Colombian authorities allege that he coordinated cocaine shipments destined for the United States and Mexico using multiple transportation methods, including speedboats, container vessels, semi-submersible vessels and aircraft.

Seven additional extraditions

The August 6 handover followed the extradition of seven other individuals to the United States and Panama during the previous week.

Six Colombian nationals were delivered to US authorities. They included Jheison Rodríguez López and Edilberto López Farelo, who were initially taken to the Unidad de Reacción Inmediata in Valledupar after their capture. Colombian authorities said the two attempted to escape from the facility but were immediately recaptured.

Eufrosino Ramos Díaz was captured during a raid at his residence and faces extradition proceedings in the United States on a charge involving a conspiracy to distribute at least five kilograms of cocaine.

Daniel Alfonso de la Rosa Robles and Pedro Lucas Robles Iguarán were identified by Colombian authorities as alleged members of a trafficking network that obtained narcotics from clandestine laboratories in the Catatumbo region and Alta Guajira. Investigators allege that the pair coordinated maritime shipments using speedboats to move cocaine toward Central America and the Caribbean, with the United States as the final destination.

Nilson Snyder Vásquez Duarte, known as “El Sobri,” was identified as an alleged financial operator responsible for receiving and managing large sums of money generated by drug trafficking organizations, with alleged connections to Colombian and Mexican cartels.

The seventh person extradited during the previous week was Panamanian national Jorge Antonio Zurita Julian, known as “El Gordo Pibe,” who was handed over to Panamanian authorities. He is wanted in Panama on money laundering and crimes against collective security charges related to drug trafficking. Colombian investigators allege that he used a company registered in his wife’s name to disguise illicit funds as legitimate business proceeds.

The extraditions form part of Colombia’s continuing cooperation with foreign authorities through DIJIN and Interpol. The individuals remain subject to judicial proceedings in the requesting countries, and the allegations described by Colombian authorities have not resulted in final convictions.

Headline photo: Five men being escorted to board on the plane extraditing them to the US. (Photo by the Colombian National Police)

“Colombia recognizes Morocco’s sovereignty over its Sahara,” Bula Escobar said at the meeting. Restrepo described the announcement as “a new beginning” for the two countries and called Morocco “Colombia’s first ally in Africa,” adding that Bogotá wants to build a strategic partnership with Rabat. Restrepo also raised the possibility of negotiating a free trade agreement to encourage Moroccan investment in Colombia, though no such talks have formally begun.

Colombia reconoció la soberanía de Marruecos sobre el Sáhara Occidental.

El anuncio se dio durante el primer encuentro del vicepresidente José Manuel Restrepo (@jrestrp) y el canciller Omar Bula (@omarbula) con el Ministro de Asuntos Exteriores del país africano.

Con esta… pic.twitter.com/aas0pirwSc

— Cancillería Colombia (@CancilleriaCol) August 8, 2026

Two days later, Colombia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (the Cancillería) issued a formal statement confirming the decision followed a “sovereign review” of the recognition its predecessor government had granted to the entity it calls the República Árabe Saharaui Democrática (Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, or SADR), noting that the United Nations does not recognize it as a member state. Bogotá said it would freeze all political and diplomatic contact with the SADR, halt exchanges of missions, and withdraw support for it in multilateral forums, “including the United Nations and the Security Council, where Colombia currently serves as a non-permanent member.” The ministry identified trade, investment promotion, tourism, food security, port and logistics development, and Atlantic connectivity as areas it wants to expand with Morocco.

A colonial-era dispute still unresolved

Western Sahara has been contested since Spain withdrew from its former colony in 1975. Morocco organized the “Green March” that year, sending hundreds of thousands of civilians into the territory to press its claim, and has administered most of it since. The Polisario Front, an armed movement representing the territory’s indigenous Sahrawi population, fought Morocco and declared a government-in-exile, the SADR, in 1976. A 1991 ceasefire monitored by the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) held for nearly three decades without the referendum ever taking place; fighting between Morocco and the Polisario Front resumed in November 2020 and has continued intermittently since. Morocco controls roughly the western three-quarters of the territory, separated from the Polisario-administered “Free Zone” to the east by a fortified sand berm running the length of the territory. Morocco has offered the region autonomy under its sovereignty since 2007; the Polisario Front continues to demand a UN-supervised independence referendum.

A widening diplomatic tilt toward Rabat

Colombia’s move follows a broader realignment in Morocco’s favor. The UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2797 on October 31, 2025, renewing the MINURSO mandate and, for the first time, calling on the parties to negotiate on the basis of Morocco’s autonomy proposal as the most “feasible” path to a settlement. Eleven Council members voted in favor; China, Russia and Pakistan abstained, and Algeria — not a Council member at the time — did not take part. Morocco’s foreign ministry says more than 130 countries now back the autonomy plan as the most realistic basis for resolving the dispute, and only about a dozen of the African Union’s 54 members still recognize the SADR. Mali withdrew its recognition of the SADR in April 2026 and Ecuador suspended its own in 2024; Peru ended its recognition in 2023. Colombia’s reversal extends that trend into what had been one of the Polisario Front’s remaining strongholds in Latin America.

For Morocco, Colombia’s recognition is a further diplomatic gain and another setback for Algeria, the Polisario Front’s principal regional backer. It also positions Rabat as an intermediary between Latin American and African markets, a role Bourita highlighted directly, saying Morocco and Colombia “could represent economic platforms for each other” given their respective positions on the two continents. He described Colombia’s decision as “historic,” saying it could give “great momentum” to bilateral relations, and said his presence in Cali reflected the Kingdom’s intent to elevate ties “to a higher level.”

“A regrettable quid pro quo arrangement driven by a deeply ideological agenda.” — Polisario Front, in a statement condemning Colombia’s decision

The Polisario Front rejected the decision. In a statement carried by Moroccan outlet Yabiladi, the movement said it “strongly condemned” Colombia’s move, calling it “a regrettable quid pro quo arrangement driven by a deeply ideological agenda” that helps “legitimize a situation resulting from the military occupation of a territory that remains subject to a decolonization process.” The Front argued the decision conflicts with Article 9 of Colombia’s own constitution, which grounds the country’s foreign relations in respect for international law and peoples’ right to self-determination, and said it undermines “Colombia’s international role as an important actor in the pursuit of peace.” It called on Bogotá to reconsider. Algeria has long framed the dispute as a matter of “incomplete decolonization and an unfulfilled right to self-determination,” and has backed the Polisario Front diplomatically and militarily for decades.

Why Colombia had not recognized Morocco’s claim before

Colombia’s position on Western Sahara has shifted with its governments for four decades. Bogotá first recognized the SADR in 1985 under President Belisario Betancur, then froze those ties in 2001 under President Andrés Pastrana. President Gustavo Petro restored full diplomatic relations with the SADR in August 2022, shortly after taking office, framing it as support for Sahrawi self-determination consistent with his government’s broader identification with Global South and non-aligned foreign-policy positions. Petro reaffirmed that stance as recently as November 2025, pledging what he called “unrestricted” support for the Sahrawi cause and linking it to Colombia’s arrival on the UN Security Council for a two-year term beginning in 2026.

That position did not survive the change of government. De la Espriella, a right-of-center former defense lawyer who took office August 7, had campaigned on unwinding Petro’s foreign policy, and moved quickly on more than one front: alongside the Western Sahara reversal, his government also recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights and moved to restore ties with Israel, becoming only the second country after the United States to do so. Colombia’s recognition of Morocco’s claim over Western Sahara is best read in that context — less a response to new facts in the territory than a marker of where the incoming administration wants to position Colombia internationally, closer to Washington, Jerusalem and Rabat and further from the non-aligned coalition Petro had cultivated.

What remains untested is the commercial follow-through. Restrepo’s reference to a possible free trade agreement was aspirational rather than an announcement of negotiations, and the Colombian and Moroccan governments have yet to lay out a timeline for the trade, investment, port-logistics and Atlantic-connectivity cooperation both sides say they want to pursue.

Finance Colombia: So who did Konecta acquire?

Mariano Castaños: Comdata. It’s a business that has more of a European footprint. lt’s the leading company in Italy, also France, and has a very good footprint coverage in England, Germany, Romania, Czech Republic, Madagascar, and Morocco. So it has a very good European footprint, and also North Africa.

Finance Colombia: That’s very interesting because Konecta is a major BPO here in America, Comdata has a huge footprint in Europe. Congratulations in this big agreement you’ve made, so tell me a little bit of the reason for the merger.

Mariano Castaños: Well, the BPO industry is evolving a lot, the consumers are evolving, they’re changing. They demand different things, and technology is accelerating all this evolution process, and the demands of customers, our customers, the companies that take care of the consumers, are also changing and evolving. What we were looking with this merger was to strengthen our offer in terms of footprint and languages. We’re a mainly a European company that is focused on Spain, with a small expansion to Portgual, and very strong in Latin America, so we had a large amount of global customers, but we didn’t have a full offer to take care of their needs in a global and consistent way. This merger was born from that, by adding Comdata’s European footprint, with Konecta’s strength in Spain and Latin America.

Comdata is also in Latin America, they have a very good presence and a very good customer base in Mexico, Peru, Colombia, and Brazil, but we are substantially larger and better positioned. The result of this is a stronger footprint, more languages, more countries, and a complemented value offer. Comdata was really good in developing value solutions and Konecta as well, and now we are taking the best of both companies to deliver a better value offer to the customers.

Finance Colombia: How many BPO employees do you have in your call centers?

Mariano Castaños: Now at Konecta we have 70,000 employees and with the merger, we will end up above 100,000 employees.

Finance Colombia: It’s going to be one of the world leaders.

Mariano Castaños: We will become the fifth worldwide.

Finance Colombia: Wow.

Mariano Castaños: Integrated, we will be the world’s 5th BPO, and our bet doesn’t end here, we’re making an aggressive bet in the United States, we disembark organically already, and now we’re looking for customers there and we’re looking to do acquisitions in the US to expand our value offer, to become more solid and consistent in the United States. Also, we’ve also been aggressive in Brazil where we have a large customer base, but we want to go further.

Finance Colombia: Excellent. We’re here at the Customer Experience Summit in Cartagena. Before, the event was in Bogota. Tell me why do you always maintain a presence here? What’s the importance of this event and Bpro as an industry association for what you do?

Mariano Castaños: Well, that’s a very good question. Bpro is the strongest association for BPOs in Latin America, I think on the world level, the association here works fantastically. This event they organized, and believe me, I participate in a lot of events and fairs in the US, in Europe, and in Latin America, and just a few times I saw one with the dynamic of this event, and particularly this year.

This is the place for competitors, where we shared practices, and vision, with the purpose of providing a better service to our customers, businesses, and clients. The best clients, the best companies of Colombia and Latin America are here, business advisors trying to learn about this and understand something as simple as how to deliver a better experience to the customers. And also there are the technology providers, who are providing their own vision, so a powerful ecosystem has been created here regarding networking, work, about building vision. I am very pleased with this event, and I am very thankful and congratulate the association and everyone that is participating here.

After two days of working together I think we all have a clear vision of how to improve the experience of the consumers and how to improve the experience of our workers, I think the event is very positive for all of us.

Biden also used the visit to announce that the US will donate another two million COVID vaccines, with some earmarked for the refugee population.

“The United States intends to designate Colombia as a Major Non-NATO Ally in recognition of our uniquely close cooperation in the hemisphere, Colombia’s significant contributions as a NATO Global Partner, its commitment to NATO’s mission to promote democratic values and commitment to the peaceful resolution of disputes, and its rejection of Russia’s unprovoked and unjustifiable aggression against Ukraine,” said the two administrations in a joint statement.

Nuclear Submarine Sent To Colombian Waters

Less than two weeks ago, Colombia hosted a US nuclear submarine in its Caribbean waters to participate in joint military interoperability exercises, after Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov threatened to send Russian forces to Venezuela or Cuba. Colombia insists that Russian troops are already present in Venezuela and expelled Russian diplomats in a spy scandal in 2020.

What is a “Major Non NATO Ally?”

While MNNA status provides military and economic privileges, it does not entail any security commitments to the designated country.

Privileges resulting from MNNA designation under 22 U.S.C. §2321k :

• Eligible for loans of material, supplies, or equipment for cooperative research, development, testing, or evaluation purposes.

• Eligible as a location for U.S.-owned War Reserve Stockpiles to be placed on its territory outside of U.S. military facilities.

• Can enter into agreements with the United States for the cooperative furnishing of training on a bilateral or multilateral basis, if the financial arrangements are reciprocal and provide for reimbursement of all U.S. direct costs.

• Eligible, to the maximum extent feasible, for priority delivery of Excess Defense Articles  transferred under section 516 of the Foreign Assistance Act (if located on the southern or south-eastern flank of NATO).

• Eligible for consideration to purchase depleted uranium ammunition.

Privileges resulting from MNNA designation under 10 U.S.C. §2350a :

• Eligible to enter into an MOU or other formal agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense for the purpose of conducting cooperative research and development projects on defense equipment and munitions.

• Allows firms of a MNNA, as with NATO countries, to bid on contracts for maintenance, repair or overhaul of U.S. Department of Defense equipment outside the United States.

• Allows funding to procure explosives detection devices and other counter-terrorism research and development projects under the auspices of the Department of State’s Technical Support Working Group .

Currently 17 countries are designated as MNNAs under 22 U.S.C. §2321k  and 10 U.S.C. §2350a :

• Afghanistan, Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Brazil, Egypt, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Korea, Kuwait, Morocco, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand, and Tunisia,

• In addition, Pub. L. 107–228  provides Taiwan shall be treated as an MNNA, without formal designation as such.

In addition to Colombia, the Biden administration granted the status to Qatar on the Arabian peninsula.

Above photo: An aerial port bow view of the nuclear-powered strategic missile submarine USS OHIO SSBN-726 underway (US National Archives)

This temporary action is necessary to ensure the health and safety of dogs imported into the United States and to protect the public’s health against the reintroduction of canine rabies virus variant (dog rabies) into the United States.

Dr. Emily Pieracci of the CDC told US News Outlet NPR that during 2020, the CDC discovered over 450 cases of dogs arriving to the US from certain countries with false vaccination certificates, prompting the agency to issue the emergency order.

Last year, the CDC identified a significant increase compared with the previous 2 years in the number of imported dogs that were denied entry into the United States from high-risk countries. Due to reduced flight schedules, dogs denied entry are facing longer wait times to be returned to their country of departure, leading to illness and even death in some cases.

CDC estimates 6% of all dogs imported into the United States arrive from countries at high risk for dog rabies. Inadequately vaccinated dogs are not protected against rabies and are a public health threat. Rabies is fatal in both humans and animals, and the importation of even one rabid dog could result in transmission to humans, pets, and wildlife. Dog rabies has been eliminated from the United States since 2007. This suspension will protect the health and safety of imported dogs by preventing importations of dogs inadequately vaccinated against rabies and will protect the public’s health against the reintroduction of dog rabies.

CDC has coordinated with other federal agencies and entities as necessary to implement this action, and CDC will review this suspension periodically.

Dogs from high-risk countries may be imported only with CDC’s advance written approval (CDC Dog Import Permit), including dogs imported from a country NOT at high risk if the dogs have been in a high-risk country during the previous 6 months. Such approvals may be granted on a limited case-by-case basis at CDC’s discretion. If your request for advance approval to import a dog is denied, CDC’s written denial will constitute final agency action. No appeals will be allowed.

To request advance written approval, you must follow the instructions at How to Apply for a CDC Dog Import Permit and send an email to CDC at CDCanimalimports@cdc.gov, at least 30 business days (6 weeks) before you intend to enter the United States. Requests cannot be made at the port of entry upon arrival into the United States. Dogs that arrive from high-risk countries without advance written approval from CDC will be denied entry and returned to the country of departure at the importer’s expense.

All dogs from high-risk countries granted advance written approval (CDC Dog Import Permit) must enter the United States at a port of entry with a live animal care facility with a US Customs and Border Protection (CBP)-issued Facilities Information and Resource Management System (FIRMS) code. At the time of publication of the FRN, the only approved facility is located at the John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York City. CDC will update the list of approved ports of entry at this website as they become available.

Restricted Countries:

Americas & Caribbean

• Belize, Bolivia, Brazil
• Colombia, Cuba
• Dominican Republic
• Ecuador, El Salvador
• Guatemala, Guyana
• Haiti, Honduras
• Nicaragua
• Peru
• Suriname
• Venezuela

Asia, the Middle East, Europe

• Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan
• Bangladesh, Belarus, Bhutan, Brunei
• Cambodia, China (excluding Hong Kong and Taiwan)
• Georgia
• India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq
• Jordan
• Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan
• Laos, Lebanon
• Malaysia, Moldova, Mongolia, Myanmar (Burma)
• Nepal, North Korea
• Oman
• Pakistan, Philippines
• Qatar
• Russia
• Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Syria
• Tajikistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste (East Timor), Turkey, Turkmenistan
• Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan
• Vietnam
• Yemen

Africa

• Algeria, Angola
• Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi
• Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Côte D’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)
• Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti
• Egypt (Temporary importation suspension of dogs from Egypt until further notice)
• Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini (Swaziland), Ethiopia
• Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau
• Kenya
• Lesotho, Liberia, Libya
• Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique
• Namibia, Niger, Nigeria
• Republic of the Congo, Rwanda
• Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan
• Tanzania (including Zanzibar), Togo, Tunisia
• Uganda
• Western Sahara
• Zambia, Zimbabwe

If a country or political unit is not listed above, it is not considered high risk for importing dog rabies into the United States. Therefore, if the country is not listed, CDC strongly recommends a rabies vaccine certificate, but it is not required to enter the United States.

If you want to learn more about how the United States determines risk for importing dog rabies, visit CDC’s Rabies Branch. To learn your risk for rabies as a traveler, see Travelers’ Health.