Colombia rebels today were set to release a hostage soldier they have held in secret camps for more than 12 years after guerrillas overran his army base at the height of the country's conflict, according to Reuters. A Red Cross mission flew into Colombia's jungles to pick up Pablo Emilio Moncayo, who was a teenager when captured and has since become a symbol of those left behind in the waning war against Latin America's longest-running insurgency. His release will be the second this week by the FARC, or Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, once a powerful rebel force that has been hobbled by President Alvaro Uribe's U.S.-backed war on guerrillas and cocaine traffickers. The handovers come months before Colombians go to the polls in May to pick a successor for Uribe, who steps down after two terms dominated by his hardline stance against the FARC. He accuses the FARC of using hostages for political gain. Guerrillas on Sunday freed Josue Daniel Calvo, kidnapped a year ago after he was wounded in combat. The FARC will still be holding 22 police and soldiers after Moncayo's release. Moncayo's father has lobbied for his release with governments from Venezuela to France, often wearing chains he says symbolize his son's captivity. Moncayo has only been seen occasionally in rebel videos since his 1997 kidnapping. The releases have reopened discussions about a possible broader agreement to negotiate an exchange of jailed rebels for kidnapped troops. But past hostage releases have not led to any such agreement or opened up peace talks.
