/ 27 October 2008

Colombian army frees hostage from Farc rebels

Former Colombian lawmaker Oscar Tulio Lizcano was rescued by Colombia's army on Sunday, after being held in captivity for more than six years.

Former Colombian lawmaker Oscar Tulio Lizcano was rescued by Colombia’s army on Sunday, after being held in captivity for more than six years by lefist Farc rebels, a government official said.

”The army and the police, in a joint intelligence operation, succeeded in rescuing Doctor Lizcano at 8.15 in the morning (1.15pm GMT)” said Henry Murillo, a top official in the western state Caldas.

The rescue comes nearly four months after the army freed Colombia’s best-known captive, former Colombian lawmaker Ingrid Betancourt, who also had been held for six years by the left-wing Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc).

Latin America’s oldest and most powerful insurgency, the Farc has been trying to topple the Bogota government since the 1960s. – AFP

 

AFP