Bombing at Colombia mall kills 3, including French woman

[WillieeArmellini]

BOGOTA, Colombia — A homemade bomb placed in a women’s bathroom rocked one of the busiest shopping centers in Colombia’s capital Saturday, killing three people, including a French woman, and wounding nine others.

Witnesses told of being evacuated from movie theaters and stores after the blast at the upscale Centro Andino in the heart of Bogota’s tourist district. Ambulances and firetrucks rushed to the scene and the injured were taken to a hospital, where two later died.

Police said a potent explosive, possibly made of ammonium nitrate, had caused the destruction.

Mayor Enrique Penalosa called it a “cowardly terrorist bombing,” and attention immediately focused on the National Liberation Army, which is the last rebel movement still active in Colombia. The group, known as the ELN, carried out a spate of recent attacks against mostly police targets in Bogota, but leaders denied involvement in the latest bombing.

President Juan Manuel Santos made a late-night visit to the shopping mall, where he strongly condemned the attack but declined to speculate on who was behind it. He said he would meet with top security advisers Sunday before heading out on a previously-scheduled tour of Europe that includes a planned visit to France.

“The best answer to cowardly terrorism is to not let it unnerve us,” he said. “The French know perfectly how to respond to these terrorist attacks and we Colombians too have the will not to let ourselves be intimidated.”

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/bombing-colombia-mall-kills-3-including-french-woman/

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