Colombia indicts 10 ex-FARC members for war crimes against Indigenous groups
The Special Jurisdiction for Peace charged former rebels with crimes committed between 1996 and 2016.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
Special Jurisdiction for Peace President Judge Alejandro Ramelli Arteaga gives an interview in Bogota, Colombia, on July 1, 2025. (Fernando Vergara / AP Photo)
Photograph: CTV News (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Colombia's Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) has indicted ten former FARC members.
- The former rebels face charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
- The alleged crimes were committed against five Indigenous groups between 1996 and 2016.
- One of the accused, Julian Gallo, previously served as a senator.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 17 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 2 of the 19 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
86/100
Craft
95/100
Hype
15/100
19 sources · methodology
Thin on the right so far
Only 1 of the 17 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
Colombia's Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) has indicted ten former members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The charges, announced on Tuesday, relate to alleged atrocities committed against five Indigenous groups between 1996 and 2016. According to the JEP, the accused oversaw the torture, murder, and forced displacement of Indigenous leaders. They are also accused of ordering subordinates to plant landmines in Indigenous territories and destroy ecosystems vital for tribal survival.
One of the indicted individuals, Julian Gallo, previously served as a senator for eight years following the 2016 peace deal between the FARC and the Colombian government. The JEP was established as part of this peace agreement to investigate crimes committed during the country's decades-long conflict. The accused have 30 days to respond to the charges. If they accept responsibility and cooperate with investigations, they may face non-prison penalties such as reparations and participation in truth and reconciliation schemes. Those who do not accept charges and are found guilty could face up to 20 years in prison.
Disagreement on specific charges
While most reports agree on the number of individuals indicted and the general nature of the charges, El Pais specifies that the accused face charges of murder, forced disappearance, and torture against the Nükak, Korebajü, Siona, Hitnü, and Jiw communities. France24 reports that the charges involve "crimes related to extermination, murder, enforced disappearance, torture, persecution, forced displacement, use of anti-personnel mines against five indigenous peoples."
Omissions in coverage
None of the right-rated reports mention the specific details about Julian Gallo's prior service as a senator, which was included in the left and centre-rated reports. Additionally, the right-rated report does not include the quote from JEP magistrate Catalina Diaz, nor does it detail the potential consequences for the accused based on their response to the charges.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 4 times, most recently on 14 Oct 2026, 03:45, and will add the sides that appear.
How other outlets pictured it
Which photograph to run is each newsroom’s own choice. The leaning beside a name is that outlet’s published rating, not a claim that the pictures divide along it. Every picture is shown from the outlet’s own server and links to the article it ran in.
![Judge Alejandro Ramelli Arteaga, president of the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, gives an interview in Bogota, Colombia, on July 1, 2025 [Fernando Vergara/AP Photo]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/ap_6acec85470c60-1791936596.jpg?resize=1920%2C1440)
Judge Alejandro Ramelli Arteaga, president of the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, gives an interview in Bogota, Colombia, on July 1, 2025 [Fernando Vergara/AP Photo]
Al Jazeera — embedded from source
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
9 rated outlets
- Nine left-rated reports led on the indictment of former FARC members for war crimes and crimes against humanity against Indigenous groups. Al Jazeera, El Pais, The Toronto Star, St Catharines Standard, The Independent, Associated Press News, abc News, The Independent (US), and La Silla Vacía all highlighted the JEP's charges. Al Jazeera and El Pais provided the most detail, with Al Jazeera noting that the indictment is part of Colombia's efforts to reckon with abuses from its civil conflict and mentioning that Indigenous communities continue to face violent attacks. Al Jazeera also reported on potential threats to the JEP's existence under the new far-right president and proposed budget cuts.
Centre
7 rated outlets
- Seven centre-rated reports focused on the JEP indicting ten former FARC members for war crimes and crimes against humanity against five Indigenous groups. CTV News, My Mother Lode, France24, Winnipeg Free Press, Newsday, EFE, and Hola News all carried this information. CTV News, EFE, and Hola News included a quote from JEP magistrate Catalina Diaz stating, "Today we are delivering justice to the most forgotten peoples of a segregated Colombia." France24 specified that three former chiefs and seven middle commanders face charges for acts allegedly committed between 1996 and 2016.
Right
1 rated outlet
- The single right-rated report, Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer, stated that Colombia's transitional justice system has charged 10 former members of the rebel Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia with war crimes and crimes against humanity, committed against five Indigenous groups between 1996 and 2016.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Colombia indicts 10 ex-FARC members for war crimes against Indigenous…?
- Of the 17 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 53% are rated left, 41% are rated centre, 6% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 19. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Colombia indicts 10 ex-FARC members for war crimes against Indigenous… left or right?
- Neither side dominates it. Of the 17 rated outlets on this story, 53% are rated left, 41% are rated centre, 6% are rated right, and no side holds the 70% this site would want before calling a field one-sided. A story is not left or right in any case; the outlets that carried it are what carry ratings.
- Is the coverage of Colombia indicts 10 ex-FARC members for war crimes against Indigenous… biased?
- Colombia indicts 10 ex-FARC members for war crimes against Indigenous groups is one event reported by 19 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting Colombia indicts 10 ex-FARC members for war crimes against Indigenous…?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered Colombia indicts 10 ex-FARC members for war crimes against Indigenous…?
- 19 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- Who has been indicted by Colombia's Special Jurisdiction for Peace?
- Ten former members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) have been indicted by the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP). These individuals are accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
- What crimes are the former FARC members accused of?
- The former FARC members are accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including alleged torture, murder, forced displacement, and the use of landmines against five Indigenous groups. These alleged crimes occurred between 1996 and 2016.
- What happens if the accused accept the charges?
- If the accused accept the charges and cooperate with investigations, they will not face prison time. Instead, they will be required to provide reparations to victims and participate in truth and reconciliation schemes.
Read it at the source
19 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
9- Colombia peace tribunal charges ex-FARC members with anti-Indigenous crimes (opens Al Jazeera in a new tab)
Al Jazeera — is Al Jazeera biased? Our profile of this outlet
- JEP Charges 10 Former FARC Chiefs for War Crimes and Against Humanity Against Five Indigenous Peoples (opens El Pais in a new tab)
- Colombia’s peace tribunal says former rebel leaders committed war crimes against Indigenous groups (opens St Catharines Standard in a new tab)
St Catharines Standard — is St Catharines Standard biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Colombia’s peace tribunal says former rebel leaders committed war crimes against Indigenous groups (opens The Toronto Star in a new tab)
The Toronto Star — is The Toronto Star biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Colombia's peace tribunal says former rebel leaders committed war crimes against Indigenous groups (opens The Independent (US) in a new tab)
The Independent (US) — is The Independent (US) biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Colombia's peace tribunal says former rebel leaders committed war crimes against Indigenous groups (opens ABC News in a new tab)
- Colombia's peace tribunal says former rebel leaders committed war crimes against Indigenous groups (opens Associated Press News in a new tab)
Associated Press News — is Associated Press News biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Colombia's peace tribunal says former rebel leaders committed war crimes against Indigenous groups (opens The Independent in a new tab)
The Independent — is The Independent biased? Our profile of this outlet
Centre
7- Colombia's peace tribunal says former rebel leaders committed war crimes against Indigenous groups (opens CTV News in a new tab)
- Colombia’s peace tribunal says former rebel leaders committed war crimes against Indigenous groups (opens My Mother Lode in a new tab)
My Mother Lode — is My Mother Lode biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Colombia’s Court of Peace Charges Former Guerrillas for Crimes Against Indigenous People · Global Voices (opens France24 in a new tab)
- Colombia's peace tribunal says former rebel leaders committed war crimes against Indigenous groups (opens Winnipeg Free Press in a new tab)
Winnipeg Free Press — is Winnipeg Free Press biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Colombia's peace tribunal says former rebel leaders committed war crimes against Indigenous groups (opens Newsday in a new tab)
- Colombia’s Special Justice of Peace Charges Exmandantes of FARC for Crimes Against Indigenous Peoples · Global Voices (opens EFE in a new tab)
- Special Justice Charges Against FARC Ex-Mandantes for Crimes Against Indigenous Peoples (opens Hola News in a new tab)
Right
1Not rated
2- JEP Indicted 10 Former FARC Members on Charges of War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity Committed Against Indigenous Peoples. (opens Haberler in a new tab)
- FARC Top Leaders Condemned for Crimes Against Indigenous Peoples (opens 14ymedio.com in a new tab)
14ymedio.com — is 14ymedio.com biased? Our profile of this outlet
How did this read?
About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.
