Colombia is shaken by a series of bomb attacks that killed nine police officers and ten soldiers and critically injured 23 others in the last 24 hours.

Most of the attacks were claimed by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebels. In the Valle del Cauca province the rebels detonated a roadside bomb when a military truck was passing by. The deflagration killed 10 soldiers, official sources informed.

Yesterday, a similar attack killed nine police officers in the Santander province. The policemen were heading for a remote part of the province to protect laborers that were clearing coca plants from the rage of the rebels. The coca plant is one of the elements that help fabricate cocaine, which is the main source of money for the rebels.

The powerful blast killed nine of the policemen on the spot and wounded two others, who survived along with a civilian that was in the car. FARC rebels haven’t claimed the attack yet, but the authorities blame it on them.

Casualties were reported in the rebels camp also, as violent clashes between rebels and governmental forces lead to the killing of six FARC members in opposite corners of the country. Three more rebels belonging to the National Liberation Army radical group were shot dead near the border with Venezuela and in central Colombia.

Colombia has been the stage of fighting between the authorities and criminal groups for the past four decades. Bombings, kidnappings and homicides became a daily matter in the country, as the violent drug cartels won’t surrender under any circumstances and continue their guerilla war with the Colombian government.