Colombia's Growing Organized Crime Threat

The Colombian government's perpetual fight against the country's armed groups appears to be entering a new phase. Paramilitary organizations created to battle Marxist insurgent groups, such as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and National Liberation Army (ELN), have shifted to become primarily criminal organizations. These groups, referred to as "bandas criminales" (bacrim), are consolidating and beginning to cooperate with insurgents against whom they had previously fought, a trend that could create a criminal organization strong enough to challenge the Colombian state.