Bogota, Colombia ? A car bomb left by a person dressed in a military uniform exploded in the parking lot of a military university in Bogota, wounding at least 23 people, as a top general was at a conference nearby, the defense minister said.

The blast occurred at Nueva Granada military university, which was hosting an event attended by foreign dignitaries and the army’s commander, Gen. Mario Montoya. The attack destroyed six vehicles, including the armored car of the school’s director.

Vice President Francisco Santos cast blame on the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, the country’s largest leftist rebel group known as FARC, which has been fighting the government for more than four decades.

Authorities said some 130 pounds of explosives bomb were hidden in a Ford Explorer that would have had to pass through two security checkpoints in entering the school’s parking lot. The complex, which contains a military school and the headquarters of an army brigade, is one of the most protected installations in the country.