At least 27 members of a leftist guerrilla group in Colombia were killed in clashes with a rival faction in a fight over control of a jungle area in central Colombia, military authorities reported on Sunday, Reuters reported. 

The clashes, which have been the most violent in recent months, occurred in the rural area of the municipality of El Retorno, in the department of Guaviare, 300 km (186 miles) southeast of Bogota, a military source said.

The region is strategic for cocaine production and trafficking, according to Reuters.