By DPA,
Bogota : Former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, three US contractors and 11 other hostages held by leftist Colombian rebels were rescued Wednesday by Colombian military forces, Defence Minister Juan Manuel Santos said here.
Betancourt, 46, had been kidnapped by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) on Feb 23, 2002. She holds dual French-Colombian citizenship and was the most high-profile hostage held by FARC.
“Ingrid Betancourt, the three US kidnapped citizens and 11 members of our armed forces are among those released,” Santos confirmed, amid applause from reporters.
“It is an unprecedented operation that will go down in history for its audacity and effectiveness, that holds the professionalism of the Colombian Armed Forces up high,” the minister stressed.
Colombian government Spokesman Cesar Velasquez told CNN en Español that no one died in the operation to secure the releases, which happened “without even one bullet” as a result of a thorough intelligence operation.
According to Colombian officials, Betancourt is in relatively good health condition, despite rumours of her imminent death that circulated in recent months.
“We expect a plane with the freed people to land in a few minutes in the Catan air base,” Velasquez said.
The spokesman noted that Colombian President Alvaro Uribe was informed of the releases soon after 1800 GMT and then flew to Bogota. Uribe met with US Republican presidential candidate John McCain Tuesday in the Colombian Caribbean city of Cartagena.
The three US contractors, Thomas Howes, Keith Stansell and Marc Gonsalves, were kidnapped by FARC in February 2003, when their plane crashed in southern Colombia. They were under contract with the US Department of Defence and were assisting the Colombians in the anti- drug effort.
President George W Bush spoke with Uribe earlier in the afternoon after learning of the successful operation and to congratulate him. White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said the United States was involved in the planning of the rescue and provided support to the Colombian military, but he did not provide details of the assistance.
“This rescue was long in the planning, and we’ve been working with the Colombians for five years, since the hostages were taken, to free them from captivity,” Johndroe said.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the United States continues to hold FARC responsible for the well-being of all remaining hostages, who should be released immediately.
“We are delighted with the safe recovery of these Americans after more than five years of captivity,” she said in a statement. “We are working now to reunite them swiftly with their families in the United States.”
The three men worked for California Microwave Systems, a subsidiary of defence giant Northrop Grumman, which said it was “extremely pleased” its employees were free and looked forward to seeing them return to their families.
“The company is grateful for the outstanding efforts of the Colombian and US governments that resulted in the freedom of its coworkers and other Colombian citizens,” Northrop said.
FARC had planned to exchange Betancourt, the three US citizens and scores of military and police officers and politicians for FARC rebels held in prison.
Operation Jaque, which took place in the south-eastern Colombian province of Guaviare, is a very strong blow on FARC, which lost three members of its seven-member leadership – including its founder and boss – in March.
The families of the kidnapped victims have long rejected the government strategy of seeking to free the hostages by force, claiming that it was too risky for their loved ones.
“In the face of such a difficult humanitarian operation, those risks have been taken, thank God with such good results,” Velasquez said.
Santos explained that the rebels intended to transfer the rebels by helicopter. They had hired a helicopter allegedly belonging to a fake company, but what they received was in fact an Army vehicle.