World news | The Guardian
· collected 2026-08-25 · by Tiago Rogero South America correspondent
Colombia's President Abelardo de la Espriella has announced a crackdown on immigrants, ordering authorities to detain and deport those in the country irregularly or with crimes committed. The operations are set to begin "this very week" and will target 848,000 Venezuelans living in Colombia who are in an irregular situation, making up about 90% of all migrants. De la Espriella's announcement has been met with criticism from opposition leaders and human rights activists, who call it "pure xenophobia and aporophobia". The president's order echoes the anti-immigration rhetoric used by US President Donald Trump, whom he is aligned with.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-25,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Colombia's new President Abelardo de la Espriella, in office for just over two weeks, announced a crackdown on immigrants, ordering authorities to detain and deport those in the country irregularly or who have committed crimes. The decision was made as Colombia continues to deal with the aftermath of a 7.4-magnitude earthquake that struck on August 10th, killing over 300 people and destroying more than 30,000 homes. De la Espriella instructed authorities to begin joint operations involving police and the migration authority by this week's end. He also stated that from now on, his government's priority will be "Colombians first, Colombians second, and Colombians third," echoing the rhetoric of his ally US President Donald Trump**. The crackdown targets irregular immigrants and those who have committed crimes, with deportation a likely consequence for those affected.
Written for “Colombia Immigration Crackdown” on 2026-08-31,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it +0.85, but none of the 2 quote(s) it offered could be found in the article text, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 2347: no verified evidence · logged 2026-08-27
Colombia’s far-right president, Abelardo de la Espriella, has announced a crackdown on immigrants, ordering authorities to detain and deport people who are in the country irregularly or have committed crimes.
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who → announce → crimes
In office for just over two weeks, the millionaire former lawyer made the announcement on Sunday as the country continued to grapple with the aftermath of a 7.4-magnitude earthquake on 10 August that killed more than 300 people and destroyed more than 30,000 homes.
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that → make → homes
De la Espriella said the first joint operations involving the police and the migration authority should begin “this very week”.
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operations → say → police
“Let the coordinated operations begin to track down illegal immigrants: first, those committing crimes; second, those who have not regularised their status and who will have to be deported immediately,” de la Espriella said during a cabinet meeting held on Sunday in Barranquilla, the Caribbean city that has in effect been turned into an alternative capital.
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that → let → capital
He echoed the “Americans first” rhetoric of his ally, US president Donald Trump, saying that from now on it would be “Colombians first, Colombians second and Colombians third”.
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Colombians → echo → ally
The Colombian president has joined other Trump-aligned leaders in the region who have also tightened migration rules, including Argentina’s Javier Milei and Chile’s José Antonio Kast.
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who → join → Milei
De la Espriella’s order is facing criticism from the opposition and human rights activists, who say it will end a migration policy that endured for more than a decade under both rightwing and leftwing governments and benefited above all migrants fleeing the humanitarian crisis in neighbouring Venezuela.
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that → face → Venezuela
Although he used the anti-immigration rhetoric characteristic of other far-right candidates during his campaign, his platform focused chiefly on his promise to pursue an iron-fist policy against criminal groups.
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platform → use → groups
In the same announcement, he also declared that all gangs involved in drug trafficking, illegal mining, extortion and smuggling were “terrorists and we will treat them as such.
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we → declare → them
Whatever happens, we will defeat them, by reason or by force.”
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we → happen → force
The president did not directly mention Venezuelans when discussing immigration, but they account for roughly 90% of all migrants in the country.
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they → mention → country
Of the 2.8 million Venezuelans living in Colombia, about 848,000 are in an irregular situation, including 193,000 children and adolescents.
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848,000 → live → children
The leftwing senator María José Pizarro Rodríguez reposted the president’s announcement and asked whether he was “proposing a Colombian ICE against fellow Latin Americans”, in reference to the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
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he → reposte → Enforcement
She added that the “order to deport irregular migrants is pure xenophobia and aporophobia”.
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order → add → migrants
There are thousands of migrants who work hard and contribute to the economies of the countries that receive them,” she wrote.
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she → be → them
The Colombian newspaper El Tiempo reported that sources within the migration department believe the agency does not have enough staff to carry out the operations De la Espriella has promised.
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Espriella → report → operations
Analysts have also noted that under Colombian law there is no such category as an “illegal” immigrant, as De la Espriella said, but rather migrants in an “irregular” situation, since being in the country without the proper documentation is not a crime.
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being → note → documentation
