Colombian presidential candidate abducted by rebels
A presidential candidate has been kidnapped by rebels in Colombia.
Former Senator Ingrid Betancourt and campaign manager Clara Rojas have been taken by the FARC, spokeswoman Diana Rodriguez said.
Ms Rodriguez says the rebels released three men who had accompanied Ms Betancourt and her aide. The three were at an army base in the city of Florencia, she said.
Ms Betancourt, 40, had left Florencia yesterday afternoon by car for the former rebel town of San Vicente del Caguan, which had been captured by army troops earlier in the day.
Colombia's government says it had warned Ms Betancourt not to make the trip because it was too dangerous.
Interior Minister Armando Estrada says the government is searching for Ms Betancourt and doing what it can to establish security in the war zone.
"It is good that politicians are doing what they can to draw support for their campaigns and their causes ... but it was not necessary to make that trip in those conditions," he said, asking other candidates to refrain from visiting the area for the moment.
