Colombia hostages ‘will be free soon’
The family of a British hostage still being held along with six other travellers in Colombia have welcomed reports that they will all be released next week.
As reported, eight travellers including 31-year-old Mark Henderson were snatched as they trekked through the Colombian rainforest on 12 September. Another British hostage, 19-year-old Matthew Scott, managed to escape after 10 days by throwing himself down a cliff and then walking through the jungle for days on end until he found a shelter at a remote village.
But now the National Liberation Army (ELN), which carried out the kidnaps, has reportedly stated that the hostages will be freed one by one next week – as long as a humanitarian commission visits the region to see how the impoverished locals live.
The Independent reports that the ELN is claiming that it kidnapped the tourists specifically to raise awareness of the plight of Colombia’s indigenous population.
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