Center-Left Colombian Senator Survives Armed Attack

Colombian Senator Alexander Lopez survived an attack in Cali, Colombia, on Friday night when he was shot at by two assailants.

"They shot one of my escorts, my other escort responded... The guys saw the response and ran away," Lopez said.

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Lopez, a senator for the center-left Alternative Democratic Pole (PDA), was reportedly fired on by two unidentified men in a dark truck.

His office released a statement: "The senator Alexander Lopez is healthy and safe, as is his security team. At this moment he is meeting with the National Police.

"Senator Alexander Lopez demands that the national government carries out an immediate investigation and response to these events, and implement guarantees for all social leaders."

Police initially said the attack was merely an attempted robbery of Lopez's vehicle, but later retracted this version of events.

Although the motive is still unclear, the attack comes only three days after Lopez attended an important meeting to follow up on agreements reached as a result of last year's major Buenaventura strike, which closed the port for three weeks.

The United Nations Commission for Human Rights in Colombia denounced the attacks on Saturday.

"The U.N. Human Rights office condemns the attack against Senator Alexander Lopez perpetrated Friday in Cali," the office wrote on Twitter. The office's representative, Alberto Brunori, said he was "deeply concerned."