This Day in Military History · November 6

1985 Colombian conflict: leftist guerrillas of the 19th of April Movement seize control of the Palace of Justice in Bogotá.

The Palace of Justice siege was an attack carried out in Bogotá, Colombia, on November 6–7, 1985, in which a guerrilla commando of the 19th of April Movement (M-19) took over the Palace of Justice, housing the Supreme Court and the Council of State. The guerrillas held roughly 350 people hostage, among them Supreme Court justices, councilors of state, judicial staff, employees, and visitors. The building stood on the north side of the Plaza de Bolívar, facing the National Capitol, seat of Congress, and one block from the Casa de Nariño, the president's residence. The group, calling themselves the "Iván Marino Ospina Company" after an M-19 commander who had been killed by the Colombian military on 28 August 1985, intended to hold a trial against President Belisario Betancur.

Read more: Palace of Justice siege Text and image from Wikipedia