Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) negotiator Jesus Santrich speaks to the media before the start of talks in Havana August 28, 2013.
Former U.S. marine Kevin Scott Sutay was released from rebel custody in Colombia over the weekend after being kidnapped in June while trekking in the jungles of the South American nation.
Left-wing rebels appear to have succumbed to international and domestic pressure, after both the Cuban and Norwegian governments lobbied on behalf of Sutay’s release. In a press release published on Sunday, the U.S. State Department thanked the Colombian leadership along with Oslo and Havana for their assistance.
The Marxist militia, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), has been battling government troops since the mid-1960s, but are currently engaged in ongoing peace talks with Bogotá aimed at ending decades of civil war.