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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Colombian rebels 'free hostages' | Colombian rebels 'free hostages' |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Two women hostages have been freed by Colombian rebels, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has said. | Two women hostages have been freed by Colombian rebels, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has said. |
| Mr Chavez, who was involved in efforts to mediate their release, made the announcement after speaking to them by telephone from Caracas. | Mr Chavez, who was involved in efforts to mediate their release, made the announcement after speaking to them by telephone from Caracas. |
| Clara Rojas and Consuelo Gonzalez had been held for several years. | Clara Rojas and Consuelo Gonzalez had been held for several years. |
| A similar attempt to rescue them was called off last month amid recriminations between the rebels and the Colombian government. | A similar attempt to rescue them was called off last month amid recriminations between the rebels and the Colombian government. |
| The women were picked up by two Venezuelan helicopters in an operation overseen by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which also confirmed their release. | The women were picked up by two Venezuelan helicopters in an operation overseen by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which also confirmed their release. |
| Mr Chavez told reporters the women were emotional and in good health. | Mr Chavez told reporters the women were emotional and in good health. |
| "They are free. I told them both: 'Welcome to life'," he said. | "They are free. I told them both: 'Welcome to life'," he said. |
| He said he expected then to arrive in Venezuela in about three hours. | He said he expected then to arrive in Venezuela in about three hours. |
| Ms Gonzalez, 57, was kidnapped in 2001. Ms Rojas, 44, an aide to former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, was seized in 2002, while she and Ms Betancourt were out campaigning. Ms Betancourt, a French-Colombian citizen, is still in captivity. | |
| Mediator role | |
| Thursday's operation came about after Mr Chavez announced that he had received the co-ordinates of the location where Ms Rojas and Ms Gonzalez would be handed over. | |
| Hugo Chavez could have a role to play in future hostage deals | |
| The Colombian government responded quickly, promising to "provide all the necessary guarantees" to enable the hostages to return home as soon as possible. | |
| Military operations in three areas in the south-eastern state of Guaviare were suspended to allow the handover to take place. | |
| The BBC's Jeremy McDermott in Colombia says the hostages' release is a coup for Mr Chavez , who has shown he has influence with the intractable Colombian rebels. | |
| He says the Venezuelan leader can now position himself as the mediator with the best chance of securing the release of the other 43 hostages the guerrillas want to exchange for hundreds of rebels in prison. | |
| Whilst the Colombian government officially welcomes the release of the two hostages, President Alvaro Uribe will have to reassess his position as pressure mounts on him to make concessions to the Farc, our correspondent says. |