De la Espriella sworn in as Colombia leader, vows crackdown on armed groups

New president, who replaces leftist Gustavo Petro, continues rightward political shift in Latin America.

Abelardo de la Espriella was sworn in as Colombia’s president Friday, marking the start of a conservative government that promises a sharp break with Gustavo Petro’s leftist administration as concerns over the nation’s finances and increased violence cloud the transition.

President Abelardo de la Espriella was sworn in in Colombia’s third largest city, Cali, under extreme security precautions. De la Espriella was sworn in by the president of Congress, Senator Honorio Henriquez of the far-right Democratic Center party in the theater of the private University of Santiago de Cali. The firs