Colombia starts rebel release to seek hostage deal
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Colombia took steps to free jailed rebel fighters on Friday, hoping to persuade guerrilla commanders to hand over hostages they have held for years, including a French-Colombian politician and three Americans.
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SAN CRISTOBAL, Venezuela -- In recent weeks, President Hugo ChÃÂ¿vez has worked with fevered intensity to secure the release of Colombian hostages from rebel groups. He has appointed his interior minister to negotiate with guerrilla commanders and has flown the families of Colombian hostages to...
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A mission to free three hostages held by leftist rebels in Colombia stalled Monday, with the rebels and Colombian authorities trading blame for the delay.
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Colombia's Roman Catholic clergy say they are in contact with Farc rebels in a bid to free more hostages.
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A Colombian rebel plan to hand over three ailing hostages to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and a Colombian senator is advancing although their release cannot be rushed, a top guerrilla leader said on Monday.
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Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez said Colombian rebels agreed on Wednesday to hand over two hostages and that he could send helicopters to pick them up as early as Thursday.
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SAN JOSE DEL GUAVIARE, Colombia, Jan 10 - Marxist rebels freed two women hostages from Colombia's jungle on Thursday in a deal brokered by Venezuela's leftist president, Hugo Chavez, that could mark a breakthrough in peace efforts.
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Colombia on Saturday called on leftist guerrillas to unconditionally free hostages after saying the rebels lied in an "incoherent" way about the whereabouts of a young boy they promised to free last month.
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BOGOTA, Colombia  - Colombia on Thursday said itwould pardon 23 jailed rebels to encourage Marxist guerrillasto free 72 hostages, including three Americans.
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Colombia ordered troops to surround jungle camps where rebels hold hundreds of kidnap victims in hopes of forcing their release despite concerns the move could endanger the lives of the hostages.
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Venezuela's President Chavez visits Colombia for talks on how to broker a hostage deal with left-wing rebels.
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Colombia's FARC rebels will release three more hostages, all former local lawmakers, to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez after he brokered the release of two captives last month, according to a rebel statement given to local Noticias Uno television on Saturday.
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BOGOTA, Colombia, June 5 -- President ÃÂlvaro Uribe has begun releasing dozens of Marxist rebels from jail in a bid to encourage the country's largest guerrilla group to liberate civilian hostages held in jungle camps, a risky move that has the support of Colombia's European allies.
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Colombia agreed on Wednesday to allow Venezuelan aircraft to land in the country to pick up three hostages held for years by leftist guerrillas, including a child born in captivity.
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Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has offered to release 50 insurgents accused of minor crimes in exchange for an equal number of hostages in rebel hands, including three Americans, his spokesman said Wednesday.
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VILLAVICENCIO, Colombia  - Three hostages held for years in Colombian by Marxist guerrillas will not be handed to a Venezuelan chopper team until at least Monday but officials said they were in constant contact with the rebels.
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Colombian President Alvaro Uribe said on Sunday he was "open for dialogue" with rebels holding scores of hostages in the jungle, after an offer by the Catholic Church to help create a safe haven for talks.