Palacios hosted a daily news program on Radio Lemas in Cúcuta, in Norte de Santander province. He was shot in the chest and abdomen by two assailants on a motor cycle. According to local news reports, Palacios has survived two previous attempts on his life, apparently carried out in retaliation for the controversial content of his newscasts.

The chairman of IAPA’s Committee on Freedom of the Press and Information, Gonzalo Marroquín, expressed sympathy to Palacios’ family and colleagues and “the IAPA’s concern at the recurrence this year of this pattern of intolerance and violence,” especially in Cúcuta, which has been characterized as one of the most difficult places to work as a journalist.

Nine journalists in Cúcuta recently complained of receiving threats and being the victims of assaults, in which the stepdaughter of one of them was killed and which led to another having to flee the country in fear of his life.

Marroquín, editor of the Guatemalan newspaper Prensa Libre, announced that the IAPA “will keep a close eye on the investigation into the murder of Palacios so that is does not become just another unpunished crime against journalists.” He called on the Colombian Attorney General’s office to begin the investigation right away and bring those guilty of the crime to justice swiftly.

He cited the IAPA-sponsored Declaration of Chapultepec, a document setting out 10 principles for press freedom and free speech, which states that “Freedom of expression and of the press are severely limited by murder, terrorism, kidnapping, intimidation … violence of any kind and impunity for perpetrators. Such acts must be investigated promptly and punished harshly."