At least 20 Colombian fighters from rival rebel factions were killed in weekend clashes over control of a strategic jungle area for drug trafficking, military sources and the human rights ombudsman office reported on Monday.

This was the country's deadliest wave of violence since the peace accords set by President Gustavo Petro in 2016

The unusually deadly violence delivers a devastating blow to the “total peace” program of the country’s first leftist president, Gustavo Petro.

Clashes between armed groups in Colombia have led to some of the worst violence in the country in years. By Julie Turkewitz Reporting from Bogotá, Colombia At least 80 people are dead and more than 18,