It’s time for a quick dose of news with Kandy Korrespondent!

On Wednesday the Colombian military successfully rescued 15 hostages from the FARC rebels. Most notable among the hostages was Ingrid Betancourt, a French-Colombian Senator and presidential candidate, who was kidnapped in 2002. Her family alongside the French government has been working tirelessly to secure her release for the past 6 years. A recent photo showing her incredibly frail caused all parties to ramp up their efforts. French Prime Minister Sarkozy made her rescue a foreign policy priority.

Also among the rescued were three DOD contractors, Marc Gonsalves, Thomas Howes and Keith Stansell who were captured in 2003 after their plane crash-landed in the Colombian jungle. The three arrived in San Antonio, Texas Wednesday night.

The Colombian rescue team posed as a civilian NGO organization that supposedly had offered to fly the rebels and the hostages to meet with rebel commander Alfonso Cano. Once they were in the air, however, the soldiers quickly overpowered the two rebels and freed the hostages. Read More »