| Marxist rebels freed four hostages whom they had held in the jungle for more than three years, relatives of the former captives said Sunday. The four former hostages were flown to Neiva, 150 miles southwest of the capital Bogota, on Sunday aboard a military plane. One of the hostages said their release was unexpected. The rebels "were transporting us during the past three weeks from the deepest part of the jungle. Finally, yesterday morning they told us that this was the day and they were going to release us in the afternoon," former hostage Anibal Rodriguez told Caracol radio. "At five in the afternoon they took us out of the woods, and to our surprise a priest was waiting for us." Rodriguez, his daughter Natalia and brother-in-law Jaime Brinez were among 16 people abducted by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, on July 26, 2001, during a mass kidnapping in Neiva. Most of the hostages have since been freed. |