Locals say ‘kidnapped’ general left village with unarmed men and without force

[Judi Lynn]

Locals say ‘kidnapped’ general left village with unarmed men and without force
Nov 17, 2014 posted by Adriaan Alsema

A Colombian general whose alleged capture by FARC guerrillas forced President Juan Manuel Santos to suspend peace talks wasn’t violently kidnapped, but left for the jungle with unarmed men and without any visible force, locals told newspaper El Colombiano.

MORE: Santos Suspends Colombia Peace Talks After ‘FARC Captures General‘

What the locals say

According to the newspaper, locals told its reporter that General Ruben Dario Alzate, the commander of the Titan Task Force, arrived on Sunday by boat in the village of Las Mercedes unarmed and in civilian clothing.

“They got out of the motorboat and went to the churchyard. Downstream another boat came with three more men in civilian clothing who went to the church to talk to these people,” Presentacion Palomeque, the leader of the local community council, told El Colombiano.

According to Palomenque none of the six were armed.

The community leader said that Alzate, the four other men and one woman left for the nearby jungle following a conversation of a few minutes.

A second local who asked to remain anonymous said the six men left the village without any visible force.

The reporter for El Colombiano said he witnessed a strong military presence in the village of Las Mercedes itself, but saw no members of the military en route from Quibdo to the village where the general allegedly was captured.

What has become the official version

The witness reports contradict those of former President Alvaro Uribe, who announced the alleged capture on Twitter based on the testimony of a military member allegedly present at the time of the disappearance.

More:
http://colombiareports.co/locals-say-kidnapped-general-left-village-unarmed-men-without-force/

[Judi Lynn]

1. Red Cross aiding in release of Colombian army general ‘captured by FARC’

Red Cross aiding in release of Colombian army general ‘captured by FARC’
Nov 17, 2014 posted by Victoria McKenzie

The Red Cross confirmed on Monday that it has begun conversations with rebel group FARC in hopes of expediting the release of an army general and two accompanying officials who were captured by alleged guerrillas in the west of Colombia.

The Red Cross told Colombia Reports that it has a team “analyzing the situation,” and is in contact with the armed group accused of having captured General Ruben Dario Alzate.

“We have a role as a neutral intermediary in Colombia’s armed conflict. We are in constant dialogue with the FARC, and using this dialogue we will do everything possible to facilitate the release [of the prisoners],” said Patricia Rey, Communications Coordinator for the Red Cross.

“These releases facilitation processes are complex, often very lengthy, and we’ve just started. We carry out [releases facilitation] with great discretion because they are also highly sensitive and confidential. We will wait for the conditions required for this provision are met,” continued Rey.

More:
http://colombiareports.co/red-cross-negotiating-hostage-release-farc/

[Bacchus4.0]

2. FARC confirms it is holding kidnapped Colombia general

Colombia's FARC guerrillas confirmed Tuesday that they are holding a missing general whose kidnapping caused the government to suspend peace talks aimed at ending the country's 50-year-old conflict.

The talks, the most promising effort yet to end the longest-running conflict in Latin America, were thrown into crisis Sunday when General Ruben Alzate was kidnapped with Corporal Jorge Rodriguez and army adviser Gloria Urrego as they traveled to visit a civilian energy project in the rural department of Choco.

In a statement posted on FARC's website, the rebel group's Ivan Rios unit claimed the kidnapping.

"Once they were clearly identified, despite wearing civilian clothes, the three were captured by our units, on the grounds that they are enemy military personnel, traveling in their official capacity, in an area of war operations," said the statement, datelined from the Colombian mountains and written on Monday.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/farc-confirms-holding-kidnapped-colombia-general-155344124.html#wyawUOm