9 neighborhoods in Comuna 13 to become breeding grounds for illegal groups of various sorts, such as militia, with or without the influence of the guerillas, peoples’ armed commando groups, and gangs of common criminals. 35. The petitioners maintain that in response to the emergence of these groups, various joint military operations were conducted in Medellín’s Comuna 13 in 2002. On May 21, 2002, for example, the so-called “Operation Mariscal” was conducted, followed by “Operation Potestad” in June, “Operation Antorcha” in August, and “Operation Orión” in October. The petitioners allege that these were combined operations involving members of the Army’s Fourth Brigade, the National Police attached to the Antioquia Police Command; personnel from the Administrative Security Department (Departamento Administrativo de Seguridad – DAS); the Colombian Air Force (FAC); the Technical Investigations Corps (CIT) and the Office of the Attorney General of the Nation. 36. According to the petitioners, paralleling these operations was a turf war being fought in Comuna 13, pitting members of the guerrilla movement against members of the Cacique Nutibara Bloc and Metro Bloc paramilitary groups. That turf war ended with Operation Orión. The latter was the largest joint military offensive launched on the city in the last decade. Nearly 1,000 Army soldiers, police, personnel from the Administrative Security Department (DAS) and the Technical Investigations Corps under the Attorney General’s Office (CIT) advanced on Comuna 13, supported by air power and armed with long-range weapons. The objective was to secure the area once and for all and ensure that conditions were right to locate the men from the first narco-paramilitary bloc that would be demobilized as a result of the negotiations with the AUC. The petitioners allege that most of those who lived in Comuna 13 still suspect that the operation enabled the paramilitaries to tighten their grip on this sector and become even stronger. The presence of the security forces in the area did nothing to protect and ensure the public’s human rights. Instead, it legitimized and allowed the unlawful actions committed by the paramilitary groups inside Comuna 13. 37. The petitioners indicate that during these operations the State failed to adopt sufficient measures to protect the civilian population. According to the petitioners, the civilian population of Comuna 13 was treated as if they were combatants in an armed conflict. These operations violated two principles of international humanitarian law, distinction and proportionality. Long-range weapons and helicopter gunships were used in a heavily populated urban area, and protected buildings like the Health Center were overtaken. Every inhabitant was treated like a potential criminal, resulting in massive arrests; many of those arrested went through protracted legal proceedings only to be found not guilty. 38. The petitioners assert that approximately 350 persons were detained in Operation Orion; of these 170 were released by court order. They also observe that as a result of these operations and the events that followed, many civic and grassroots organizations disbanded in the face of the persecution and threats their members suffered because of their resistance to the presence of armed actors, first the militia groups and later the paramilitary groups. Two prominent examples were the Las Independencias Women’s Association [Asociación de Mujeres de Las Independencias] and the Community Action Board [Junta de Acción Comunal]. 39. The petitioners indicated in their observations that the State’s analysis of the context in the present case is biased and tendentious, in line with the new legal models of defense adopted by the State, in which victims’ rights are denied at whatever cost necessary. They observe that in 2002, Medellín was experiencing a serious public order situation, marked by the confrontation between the paramilitary groups, who enjoyed the support of the official forces, and the different groups of urban