Colombia's ELN rebels preparing to release hostage, official says

BOGOTA, Oct. 28 (UPI) -- Juan Camilo Restrepo, the Colombian government's chief negotiator with the National Liberation Army, or ELN, said the rebel group's last hostage will be released soon, which will allow peace talks to begin.

Odin Sanchez, a former congressman, has been held by the ELN since April. Sanchez handed himself over to the rebels in exchange for the release of his ailing brother, who was held by rebels for nearly three years.

Restrepo on Thursday said the Red Cross and the Catholic Church were working to secure Sanchez's release, El Tiempo reported. Peace talks between the government and the ELN were set to begin on Thursday, but President Juan Manuel Santos' administration said it would not hold negotiations while the rebels still had hostages.

The ELN sent peace delegates to Quito, Ecuador, where negotiations were to be held, despite the government's ultimatum that led to the talks being suspended.

"We recognize the effort and support of the social delegations present today in Quito," the ELN said in a statement. "We do not share the suspension."

The ELN, like FARC, began as a Marxist-inspired insurgency in the 1960s. It was never as large or as powerful as FARC, but like FARC, its members engaged in drug-trafficking, kidnapping and other illegal activity to fund their campaign against the government.

There are an estimated 2,500 ELN rebels living mostly in Colombia's rural, mountainous areas. More than 220,000 people have died and about 5 million have been internally displaced due to the Colombian conflict primarily attributed to FARC since its founding in 1964.

Santos was recently awarded the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end Colombia's 52-year conflict. Santos said negotiations with the ELN will not take into account the FARC deal and its rejection.