On July 2, Colombian military intelligence and Special Forces liberated 3 U.S. hostages, former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, and 11 Colombian police and soldiers who had been held by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia for as many as 11 years. The Americas Project at the Center for American Progress hosted Colombian Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos for a discussion of the hostage rescue mission and other recent severe blows against the FARC and their implications for efforts to bring Colombia's long history of illegal armed conflict to a close.
Introduction by:
Dan Restrepo, Director, The Americas Project, at the Center for American Progress
Distinguished Speaker:
Juan Manuel Santos, Minister of National Defense of Colombia
