Colombian army rescues hostages
Sunday, July 20, 2008 at 2:07 am Under World News Alerts 29 views
In yet another daring rescue, the Colombian army has rescued 8 hostages kidnapped by FARC rebels in the deep mountains of Colombia. The army managed to rscue 8 of the 18 hostages after its choppers swooped down on the rebels hideout in the Amazon.
FARC guerrillas kidnapped 10 people in the Pacific state of El Choco, Colombia on Friday (July 18). The hostages were part of a group of people riding on a boat on the Atrato River, 400 kilometres west of Bogota. According to the Colombian military, at least one rebel dressed in civilian clothing boarded the boat at a port in Antioquia. Some time after 2 pm local time all contact was lost with the boat and the rebels took all 18 passengers hostage.
The army dispatched a boat and a helicopter to search for the boat and the rebels subsequently released eight of the hostages. “We achieved the liberation of six adults and two children, in other words eight people, and we’re developing operations to continue the search of another 10 people who, according to the information that we’ve been given, are still being held by that terrorist group (FARC),” said 7th Army Division Commander General Pablo Rodriguez.
Relatives of the boat passengers said they were still unsure whether their family members were among those still held by the FARC, or those who were freed. “We’re waiting for the names of the people who were liberated to be released officials so we can stop this anguish, this pain that we feel today,” said Hernando Moreno.
The FARC hold over 700 hostages for ransom and extortion used to finance their 4-decades-old Marxist war against the Colombian government. Earlier this month, the army duped rebel kidnappers into releasing a group of their most prominent hostages, including French-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt and three American contractors.
(With inputs from agencies)
( This post is from an independent writer. The opinions and views expressed herein are those of the author and are not endorsed by APakistanNews.Com.)
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