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Explosion outside bullring in Colombia injures 30

The explosion occurred near the Plaza Santamaria bullring in Bogota
The explosion occurred near the Plaza Santamaria bullring in Bogota

An explosion in Bogota injured about 30 people, most of them police protecting a bullring that had been the target of protests when it reopened last month, city officials said.

Mayor Enrique Penalosa had said on Twitter that a police officer was killed in the blast, but Interior Minister Juan Fernando Cristo said there were no deaths.

"We condemn the attack with explosives. An unacceptable use of violence. We are told police officers are injured. There are no mortal victims," Mr Cristo said on Twitter.

The city hall said 31 people were injured, two of them seriously.

The explosion occurred near the Plaza Santamaria bullring, which was beset by protesters when bullfights resumed there on 22 January after a four-year hiatus.

Bogota explosion

The injured were mainly police protecting the venue, as they have every bullfight Sunday since the protests, local media reported.

Mr Penalosa, who flew over the scene in a helicopter, said the area had been secured.

"Anyone who wants to go to the bullfight can do so in safety," he tweeted.

"The terrorists are not going to intimidate us and we are going to do what is necessary to capture them," he added.

The authorities have not said who was behind the explosion or whether anti-bullfight activists were suspected.

Closed in 2012 by the city's former leftist mayor Gustavo Petro, the bullring was ordered to reopen by Colombia's Constitutional Court.