Four Chinese hostages freed in Colombia
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The Chinese ambassador to Colombia, Mr Wang Xiao (left), shakes hands with one of four Chinese workers of an oil company who have been freed in southern Colombia after being held hostage since June 2011, allegedly by Colombia's FARC rebels, at the airport in Bogota, on Nov 22, 2012. The head of Colombia's national police told reporters the hostages had been freed as a result of "a humanitarian operation orchestrated by the International Committee of the Red Cross and Chinese authorities." The official said the identity of the kidnappers was still unknown. -- PHOTO: AFP
BOGOTA (AFP) - Four Chinese oil company employees held hostage since June 2011, allegedly by Colombia's FARC rebels, have been freed in southern Colombia, their embassy said on Thursday.
"They released the four last night in the department of Caqueta. They are in good spirits," said the spokesman of China's embassy in Bogota.
The official said the identity of the kidnappers was still unknown. He confirmed that the four hostages - three engineers and a translator - are Chinese citizens.
President Juan Manuel Santos welcomed the news in a message on Twitter.
