Colombian army releases 57 soldiers detained by locals

Fifty -seven soldiers who were held captive by the locals in the Mountains of Colombia from the weekend were released in the military operation, said the Colombian Minister of Defense.

Minister Pedro Sanchez said no shot was released in what he called “operation”.

The soldiers were confiscated in the region of the Kauki, the rebel group of the EMC, which is involved in the production and trade of cocaine.

Mr. Sanchez accused the EMC of calling the “abduction” of the soldiers, saying that the locals who had seized them were ordered to do so to the rebels.

Colombian military said the incident was caused by the arrest of an EMC suspected insurgent on Saturday.

When the soldiers were preparing for exceeding the suspected mountainous area, they were surrounded by more than 100 people.

The next day, the second military unit was confiscated by an even greater group of locals, said General Eric Rodriguez of the Colombian army.

It is not the first time the security forces were detained by the locals, but the size of the group of soldiers was unusually large.

In the past similar cases, locals negotiating with humanitarian groups and enthusiastic soldiers were released relatively quickly.

But this time, those who hold 57 refused to talk to any Bethvens, causing the deployment of additional troops into the area to release the captive soldiers.

A strongly armed strengthening was located in the area and arrested 20 people, the Defense Minister said.

According to the military, more than 90% of the inhabitants of this territory depend on the cultivation of Coco bushes – a plant used to make cocaine – for life.

Therefore, the presence of soldiers in the area is often regarded as a direct threat.

The region has also been launched by the presence of several armed groups demanding farmers and landowners and participate in illegal mining and trade in cocaine.