11 killed, 11 injured in Colombia shootings

BOGOTA - Eleven people died and another 11 were injured in two separate shootings in Colombia, police said Monday.

Gunmen opened fire late Sunday in a house in the city of Barranquilla where a party was being held, killing five people and injuring 11 others including a five-year-old boy.

According to witnesses, six men arrived on three motorcycles and opened fire with machine guns and handguns, and then fled the scene.

Police said the attack was probably part of a war between gangs fighting for control of Barranquilla’s poor neighbourhoods.

In a separate attack, six people were killed early Monday in a rural area near the northern town of Montelibano. Preliminary investigations indicated that the murders were committed by the so-called Aguilas Negras (Black Eagles), a paramilitary group with ties to drug trafficking, officials said.