At least 80 people are dead and more than 18,000 have been forced to flee their homes in Colombia, officials say, amid fierce clashes between two rival armed groups on the border with Venezuela.

Civilians caught in the crossfire as ELN guerillas target former members of a separate rebel group in the bloodiest violence in recent years A fresh outbreak of guerilla violence amid a faltering peace process in Colombia has left more than 80 people dead,

A fresh outbreak of guerrilla violence amid a faltering peace process in Colombia has left more than 80 people dead, including civilians, and displaced around 11,000 in just four days, officials reported on Sunday.

Terrified residents carrying backpacks and belongings on overladen motorcycles, boats, or crammed onto the backs of open trucks, fled the region over the weekend.

A fresh outbreak of guerrilla violence amid a faltering peace process in Colombia has left more than 80 people dead, including civilians,

At least 39 people have been killed in violence involving leftwing guerrillas near Colombia's restive border with Venezuela, authorities said Friday, prompting the government to suspend high-stakes peace talks with the group.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro recently ended peace talks with the National Liberation Army (ELN), one of the armed groups involved in the fighting, saying it had "no will for peace". View on euron

More than 8,000 civilians fled the violence, with many seeking shelter in government facilities or hiding in the mountains.

The death toll from attacks by a rebel group in Colombia's Catatumbo region has risen to 60, the country's human rights office has said. Rival factions have been vying for control of the cocaine trade in the region - which sits near the border with Venezuela - for years.

Colombia vowed "war" against left-wing guerrillas Monday, as security forces rushed to contain a wave of violence that has killed more than 100 people and threatens to derail the country's