AGC Peace Talks Timeline

The Autodefensas Gaitanistas de Colombia (also known as the Clan del Golfo or Ejército Gaitanista de Colombia – AGC) was formed by paramilitary commanders that refused to demobilise along with the rest of the Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (AUC), a right-wing paramilitary group, in 2005.

The AGC’s current activities include drug trafficking, illegal mining, extortion, human trafficking and the control of legal and illegal economies in the places where they exercise exclusive control, which includes control of or participation in local public budgets.

Between 2018 and 2023, the group’s membership increased by 58% – growing from 3,803 members to 6,015 members. Recent figures (April 2024) reflect that the AGC now has 9,000 members.

7 August 2024

Colombian Government Announced Peace Talks with AGC

The Colombian Government officially announces that it will open negotiations with the AGC, recognising members as  negotiators in the Espacio de Conversación Sociojurídico and lifting arrest warrants.

This brings about certain legal problems, considering there is no legal framework for the demobilisation of armed groups that are not “political” actors.

4 September 2024

AGC Embarks on Violent Campaign in Chocó

Otty Patiño, Colombia’s High Peace Commissioner, announces that the AGC wishes to take control of Quibdó and is embarking on a violent campaign to do so.

30 September 2024

Prime Suspect Killed by Police

The Colombian Police Force kill 8 members of the AGC in an operation.

Retired army major Juan Carlos Rodriguez (aka Zeus) was one of those killed, the alleged ringleader of the AGC’s Magdalena Medio Bloc and a prime suspect after escaping from jail in April 2024.

2 November 2024

AGC Proposes Peace Talks

The AGC proposes peace talks around three central themes to the Colombian and American governments: migration, drug trafficking and deforestation.

5 February 2025

Government Negotiator Meets With AGC

Alvaro Jimenez, the government’s negotiator, meets with five members of the AGC’s central command in preparation of possible negotiations about the group’s demobilisation.

Negotiators discuss transformation of the territory, protection of life and a reduction of violence.

May 2025

Colombian government intensifies security operations against the AGC

Since mid-April, approximately 200 cartel members were arrested, and 15 were killed. Additionally, authorities seized 6.8 tonnes of narcotics, along with arms and ammunition.

June 2025

Colombia launches major troop deployment

Sending 16,000 additional soldiers to combat illegal armed groups, including the AGC, particularly in drug- and gold-rich areas such as Catatumbo.

24 July 2025

Escalating conflict between the Autodefensas Conquistadoras de la Sierra Nevada (ACSN) and the AGC

In Magdalena, Colombia, an escalating conflict between the Autodefensas Conquistadoras de la Sierra Nevada (ACSN) and the Clan del Golfo has led to a significant surge in homicides, with 2024 marking the region’s highest rate in a decade. This war, stemming from a 2018 dispute over cocaine trafficking, has broadened into a struggle for territorial control and ‘armed governance’.

20 August 2025

Petro’s government officially reopens negotiations with the Gulf Clan in Qatar.

The aim of these talks is reducing violence in regions where the Gulf Clan has greater influence, including Urabá, Córdoba and Bajo Cauca. The process began in February involving delegations from both sides, including six group leaders and government experts on human rights and communities.

The government is also engaged in Peace Talks with the EMC, ELN, Segunda Marquetalia, and the ACSN.