At least seven people have died in a wave of bomb and gun attacks in south-western Colombia, according to local media reports.

Two police officers were said to be among those killed in the attacks, which targeted Cali, the country’s third-largest city, and several nearby towns.

Car bombs, motorcycle bombs, rifle fire and a suspected drone were reportedly used in the attacks. The Colombian Ministry of Defence said 19 attacks had taken place.

Local media have linked some of the attacks to a faction of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a once-powerful guerrilla group. The BBC has not been able to independently verify this.

Police stations, municipal buildings and civilian targets were hit as an escalating security crisis grips the South American country.

Police put the toll at seven dead, according to Reuters and Agence France-Presse, while the number of injured ranged from 28 to more than 50.

In a statement posted to social media, the Colombian Ministry of Defence said there were 12 attacks in the Cauca region and seven in the Valle del Cauca region, the ministry said.

The ministry described the violence as “a desperate reaction by illegal armed groups to the massive operations of the [military and police], which have devastated their illicit structures and economies”.

The mayor of the region’s biggest city, Cali, said the city had returned to 1989, when it was blighted by the drugs trade and cartel violence.

The attacks come days after the attempted assassination of presidential candidate Miguel Uribe Turbay in the capital city, Bogota, while he addressed supporters.

A 15-year-old was arrested on the scene at the time. On Tuesday, the Attorney General’s office said the teenager did not accept the charges levelled against him, including attempted murder and illegal possession of a firearm.

A judge has ordered the detention of the teenager, the Attorney General’s office added.