A candidate to be president of Colombia is in a critical condition after being shot multiple times at a campaign rally.
Miguel Uribe Turbay, 39, a senator and prominent opposition voice, was shot on Saturday evening while addressing supporters in a public park in the capital Bogotá.
Footage shared on social media shows the moment gunfire was heard, sending crowds fleeing in panic.
Police arrested a 15-year-old suspect at the scene. Authorities in the South American country have not yet established a motive.
Uribe was rushed to hospital by air ambulance after reportedly being shot in the knee and twice in the head.
He remains in critical condition, as supporters gathered outside the hospital for a candlelit vigil.
His wife, Maria Claudia Tarazona, has asked Colombians to pray for his recovery. She said: “Miguel is fighting for his life. Let us ask God to guide the doctors who are treating him.”
Uribe's party, the right-wing Centro Democratico condemned the attack, calling it a threat to "democracy and freedom in Colombia".
The government of left-wing President Gustavo Petro said it "categorically" condemned the attack as an "act of violence not only against his person, but also against democracy".
Colombia’s president, Gustavo Petro delivered a solemn TV address, calling the shooting “a day of pain” and urging the country to unite: “What matters most today is that all Colombians focus the energy of our hearts on ensuring that Dr Miguel Uribe stays alive.”
Defence Minister Pedro Sánchez described the shooting as a “vile attack” and announced a reward for information on those who may have been behind it.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the incident a “direct threat to democracy”. Rubio controversially blamed the attack on what he described as “violent leftist rhetoric” from senior Colombian officials, but did not provide evidence.
Uribe, a vocal critic of Petro’s government, launched his bid for the presidency last year. He is a well-known figure in Colombian politics, coming from a prominent political family.
His mother, journalist Diana Turbay, was killed in 1991 during a failed rescue mission after being kidnapped by Pablo Escobar’s Medellín cartel.
As the investigation into the attack continues, questions are being raised about the safety of political candidates in Colombia’s often volatile landscape and what this latest act of violence means for the country’s fragile democratic process.
