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Colombian rebels say they released six soldiers before talks

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The Associated Press

Associated Press

Colombia's Foreign Minister Alvaro Leyva, far left, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez, top center, Colombian Peace Commissioner Danilo Rueda, second from left, and representatives from the United Nations meet with representatives of the Colombian guerrilla National Liberation Army (ELN) in Havana, Cuba, Friday, Aug. 12, 2022. The delegations of the Colombian government and the guerrilla National Liberation Army announced on Friday that they are committed to taking the necessary steps to try to reactivate the peace negotiations suspended four years ago.
Colombian Foreign Minister Alvaro Leyva, far left, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez, top center, Colombian PEACE Commissioner Danilo Rueda, second from left, and representatives of the United Nations meet with representatives of Colombia's Guerrilla National Liberation Army (ELN) in Havana, Cuba, Friday, August 12, 2022. The Colombian government and the guerrilla National Liberation Army delegation said Friday they were committed to taking the necessary steps to resume peace talks that were suspended four years ago. Photo credit: Ismael Francisco /THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Havana (AP) — A Colombian guerrilla group In a gesture of goodwill, he released six prisoners before peace talks with the government of new President Gustavo Petro.

The release of the soldiers was a "unilateral humanitarian gesture" acknowledging the Colombian government's efforts to facilitate the resumption of dialogue, according to a protest known in Spanish. The government-affiliated National Liberation Army said: Acronym ELN.

The Associated Press received a guerrilla statement on Thursday. It contained images of soldiers during the liberation, as several rebels in uniform stood nearby.

Petro and his ELN representatives met in Cuba last week to explore the possibility of resuming negotiations. The dialogue was interrupted by former President Yván Duque in 2019 after guerrillas blew up a police academy in Bogota, killing more than 20 cadets.

After this incident, Colombian authorities issued an arrest warrant for his ELN leader in Cuba. Cuba refused to extradite them, arguing that doing so would undermine its neutral status in the conflict.

The United States subsequently placed Cuba on its list of state sponsors of terrorism. Founded in the 1960s, the ELN has been designated a terrorist organization by the United States.

In 2016, Colombia signed a peace deal with a larger rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

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