BOGOTA, Dec. 5 (UPI) -- The Colombian government said it would reopen talks with the country's leading leftist rebel group in hopes of securing the release of its hostages.
Colombian Peace Commissioner Luis Carlos Restrepo said he was given permission from President Alvaro Uribe to restart talks with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, El Tiempo reported.
Last month proposed talks between the Colombian government and FARC -- scheduled to be mediated by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez -- were called off.
However, the recent discovery of several videotapes of captives, including three U.S. defense contractors abducted in 2003 and a former Colombian presidential candidate, has sparked renewed interest in freeing the hostages.
FARC has been fighting the Colombian government for more than 40 years.
