Conservative Colombian senator in serious condition after shooting at political rally

BOGOTA (AP) — Colombian Sen. Miguel Uribe Turbay, a conservative presidential hopeful, was in “serious” condition Sunday following surgery for a gunshot wound at a political rally a day earlier, Bogota’s mayor said.

Mayor Carlos Galán visited the Fundación Santa Fe clinic to express solidarity with the family of the 39-year-old senator.

“He survived the procedure; these are critical moments and hours for his survival,” said Galán early Sunday after receiving information from the medical staff at the clinic.

The hospital said Sunday that Uribe Turbay was recovering in intensive care after undergoing neurosurgery and a procedure on his left thigh. His condition was described as “extremely serious,” and his prognosis was reserved.

“Miguel continues to fight hard for his life, and I ask each of you to keep praying fervently,” Uribe Turbay’s wife, María Claudia Tarazona, said in a statement.

Former presidents Álvaro Uribe and César Gaviria visited the clinic, along with senators, city council members and other politicians, including former senator Ingrid Betancourt.

The attack took place in a park in the Fontibon neighborhood in Bogota when armed assailants shot him from behind, said the right-wing Democratic Center, which was the party of former president Uribe. The men are not related.

Images circulating on social media showed a person firing several shots at the senator from behind, apparently hitting his head before he collapsed.

The Attorney General’s Office, which is investigating the shooting, said the senator received two gunshot wounds in the attack, which also wounded two others. Their identities and conditions have not been disclosed.

The office said a 15-year-old boy was arrested at the scene with a firearm. He was injured in the leg and was recovering at another clinic, authorities said. Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez added that over 100 officers are investigating who was behind the attack.

Elizabeth Dickinson, a security analyst at Crisis Group, told The Associated Press that the assault on the senator was a throwback to a time in Colombia “when violence converted into a political tool at the highest levels.” The incident has frightened Colombians, she added, because it highlights a recurring cycle of violence “even inside families that have been suffering its consequences for decades.”

The intellectual author of the shooting, she said, “clearly had the intention to stir up the country.”

The Colombian Senate called for national unity Sunday in a statement, emphasizing that political leaders and lawmakers face risks in a polarized nation.

Uribe Turbay is the political heir of his grandfather, former President Julio César Turbay who was in office from 1978-82. His mother, Diana Turbay, was a journalist who was kidnapped and killed in 1991 during a failed rescue attempt. Her death came during one of the most violent periods in the history of the South American country, then-plagued by drug cartel violence.

The senator announced his presidential bid in early March. Colombia will hold a presidential election on May 31, 2026, marking the end of President Gustavo Petro's term. Petro, the country’s first leftist leader, is not eligible for reelection.

Outside the Fundación Santa Fe clinic, dozens of people gathered in prayer for Uribe Turbay’s recovery.

Late on Saturday, after leading an extraordinary Security Council session, Petro, Colombia’s first leftist president, promised “complete transparency” in the investigation and to find out who was behind the attack. He also promised an investigation into any failures by the senator’s bodyguards.

The president canceled a planned trip to France “due to the seriousness of the events,” according to a presidential statement.

World leaders and senior officials, including from the United States, Chile, Ecuador, and the European Union, condemned the violence and expressed support for the Colombian people and Uribe Turbay’s family.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on X that the “United State condemns in the strongest possible terms the attempted assassination of Senator Miguel Uribe.” He urged Petro “to dial back the inflammatory rhetoric and protect Colombian officials.”

“This is a direct threat to democracy and the result of the violent leftist rhetoric coming from the highest levels of the Colombian government,” Rubio said.

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

A man prays for Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay's recovery after he was shot at a political rally, in Cali, Colombia, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Santiago Saldarriaga)

Maria Claudia Tarazona, the wife of Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay who was shot at a political rally, talks to the press outside the clinic where he is being treated, in Bogota, Colombia, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)

Maria Claudia Tarazona, the wife of Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay who was shot at a political rally, talks to the press outside the clinic where he is being treated, in Bogota, Colombia, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)

People gather to pray for Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay's recovery after he was shot at a political rally, in Cali, Colombia, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Santiago Saldarriaga)

People march to the clinic where Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay is being treated after he was shot, in Bogota, Colombia, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.

Iran had no immediate reaction to the news, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.

Meanwhile Monday, Iran called for pro-government demonstrators to head to the streets in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”

Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyberattacks and direct strikes by the U.S. or Israel, according to two people familiar with internal White House discussions who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night. Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: “If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.”

Trump said that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.

“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”

He added: “The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate.”

Iran through country's parliamentary speaker warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.

More than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 496 of the dead were protesters and 48 were with security forces.

With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.

Those abroad fear the information blackout is emboldening hard-liners within Iran’s security services to launch a bloody crackdown. Protesters flooded the streets in the country’s capital and its second-largest city on Saturday night into Sunday morning. Online videos purported to show more demonstrations Sunday night into Monday, with a Tehran official acknowledging them in state media.

In Tehran, a witness told the AP that the streets of the capital empty at the sunset call to prayers each night. By the Isha, or nighttime prayer, the streets are deserted.

Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”

Another text, which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.

“Dear parents, in view of the enemy’s plan to increase the level of naked violence and the decision to kill people, ... refrain from being on the streets and gathering in places involved in violence, and inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country,” the text warned.

The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.

The demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of the Iranian rial currency, which trades at over 1.4 million to $1, as the country’s economy is squeezed by international sanctions in part levied over its nuclear program. The protests intensified and grew into calls directly challenging Iran’s theocracy.

Nikhinson reported from aboard Air Force One.

In this frame grab from video obtained by the AP outside Iran, a masked demonstrator holds a picture of Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran shows protesters taking to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)