Colombia car bomb attack: Death toll rises to 21

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At least 21 people were killed and another 68 wounded after a car bomb blast outside a police academy in Colombia's capital Bogota on Thursday, the worst such incident in the city in 16 years.

The blast, which targeted the General Santander Police Academy in southern Bogota, took place at 9:30 a.m. local time (14:30 GMT).

Updated at 13:35 BJT, January 18

The death toll from the car bomb attack climbed to 21, and 68 people were wounded, Colombian police said in a statement.

According to the statement, the person who was responsible for the incident was among the dead, and 58 of those injured had been discharged from the hospital.

People take part in a candlelight vigil to honor victims, close to the scene of a car bomb explosion, in Bogota, Colombia January 17, 2019. /VCG Photo

"All Colombians reject terrorism and we're united in fighting it," President Ivan Duque tweeted in the aftermath.

Updated at 12:57 BJT, January 18

At least 11 people were killed and another 65 wounded in the accident, said the defense ministry.

Officials identified the attacker as Jose Aldemar Rojas, saying he drove into the academy aboard a 1993 grey Nissan Patrol car that was loaded with 80 kilograms of pentolite, a high composite explosive.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Police officers stand guard at the entrance of one of the hospitals where victims of the ‍car bomb explosion are being treated in Bogota, Colombia, January 17, 2019. /Reuters Photo

The Colombian government has declared three days of mourning. President Ivan Duque called the explosion a "crazy terrorist act" against unarmed cadets and said he had ordered police and the military to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice.

The car bomb attack has been "strongly condemned" by the United Nations, said Stephane Dujarric, the UN spokesperson, on Thursday.

The president of the UN General Assembly, Maria Fernanda Espinosa also issued a statement condemning the "atrocious attack" and "expressed solidarity with the victims and their families, the people, and the Government of Colombia."

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