Colombia’s president has issued a decree giving himself emergency powers to restore order in a region bordering Venezuela that has been racked by an outbreak of deadly violence between rival armed groups.

Gustavo Petro’s decree on Friday gives him up to 270 days to impose curfews, restrict traffic and take other steps that would normally violate Colombians’ civil rights or require congressional approval, The Associated Press reported.

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It applies to the rural Catatumbo region on Colombia’s northeastern border with Venezuela.

The area has seen a surge in violence since mid-January between National Liberation Army (ELN) rebels and dissident groups from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), which are battling for control of drug-trafficking routes.

At least 80 people have been killed, and more than 32,000 have been forced to flee their homes in recent weeks, according to rights groups. Residents have said the armed groups are going door-to-door and launching indiscriminate attacks.

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Last week, Petro’s government announced it was suspending peace talks with the ELN due to the uptick in violence in Catatumbo.

The left-wing president, who took office in 2022, had pledged to bring “total peace” to the South American country after a decades-long conflict between the state, paramilitaries and rebel groups.

Petro has pushed for negotiations with the armed groups, and his strategy has reduced the violence. But rebel infighting and clashes with the Colombian army have persisted.

The government has deployed thousands of soldiers to Catatumbo to try to stem the recent violence. On Wednesday, the office of Colombia’s attorney general also reissued arrest warrants for ELN leaders.

It said in a statement that it was “revoking the benefits of suspended arrest warrants for 31 representatives of [the ELN] … who had been recognised by the national government as spokespeople at negotiations”.

The ELN has denied attacking civilians and said its offensive is against a faction of former FARC rebels and the demobilised rebels who support them.

The FARC used to be the largest rebel group in the country, but after a 2016 peace deal largely dismantled the organisation, several groups splintered off. They too have engaged in recent peace talks with the Petro government.

Rights groups have urged the government to ensure that civilians in Catatumbo are protected.

“We call on the Colombian authorities to urgently take all necessary measures to protect civilians in the Catatumbo region, including human rights defenders,” said Amnesty International, warning of “growing threats of confinement, further killings, and enforced disappearances”.

United Nations chief Antonio Guterres also expressed concern this week at the deteriorating situation.

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Guterres called for “an immediate cessation of acts of violence against the civilian population and for unhindered humanitarian access”, his spokesman said.

Many Catatumbo residents have fled to Venezuela or to the neighbouring Colombian region of Norte de Santander.

Adib Fletcher, the senior regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean at the aid group Project HOPE, said displaced families — including mothers with young children — have been arriving in Norte de Santander in droves.

“Families have fled with just one or two bags, and they have no certainty on when they can return to their homes,” Fletcher said in a statement on Wednesday.

“As people find shelter in overcrowded areas, we are concerned about disease outbreaks and an increased strain on the local health system.”

Zilenia Pana, 48, fled the fighting with her eight- and 13-year-old children for the relative safety of Ocana, a small town in Norte de Santander.

Seeing “the dead bodies was sad, painful. That breaks your soul, your heart,” Pana told the AFP news agency.

She said she prays only that the fighting stops so she can return home with her children. “That’s all we want. That’s all we ask from those people,” she said.