Operation Emmanuel

Operation Emmanuel (Spanish: Operación Emmanuel) is a humanitarian operation proposed and set up by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez intended to rescue politician Clara Rojas, her son Emmanuel, born in captivity, and former senator Consuelo González from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in Colombia with the permission of the Colombian government. Chávez' plan was supported by the governments of Argentina, Brazil, France, Ecuador and Bolivia, as well as the Red Cross which will also participate of the operation. The mission consists on flying Venezuelan aircraft labeled with the Red Cross insignia and into Colombia to an airport in the town of Villacicencio, then resupplying, and from there reaching the secret rescue point set up by the FARC.^[1][2] On December 26, 2007 the Colombian government through the Minister of Foreign Affairs approved the mission.^[3]

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Background

Colombian politician and then senator Consuelo González was kidnapped by the FARC on September 11, 2001 and had since then been held by her captors, in order to pressure a possible "humanitarian exchange" between government-held guerrilla prisoners for FARC-held hostages. In 2002 former Vice Presidential candidate Clara Rojas was kidnapped along with presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt and both also continued to be held by the FARC. While in captivity, Clara Rojas got involved in a relationship with one of her captors and had a baby as a result, who was named Emmanuel.

In 2007 Colombian policeman John Frank Pinchao escaped from his FARC captors and confirmed the existence of the relationship and of Emmanuel.

Mission

President of Venezuela Hugo Chávez has said that the plan consists of three phases. The first phase was to send the two MI-17 helicopters to Colombia carrying five International Red Cross Committee delegates. Both helicopters are to be equipped with medical aid apt for the humanitarian mission and in accordance with International Red Cross standards. Chávez, personally inspected the two helicopters in Santo Domingo before departing along with former president of Argentina Néstor Kirchner, who was also invited to supervise the operations. Besides the two Mi-17 helicopters, there will be used two Bell 412 helicopters and three French-made executive jets Falcon 200 for support tasks.^[4]

Along the ICRC delegates there will be representatives from Ecuador, Brazil, Argentina, France, Cuba, Ecuador, Bolivia, Colombia amd Switzerland. Hollywood director Oliver Stone was contacted by Chávez to film a documentary about the ordeal.

Family members of the three hostages traveled from Colombia to Caracas to wait for end of the operation set to conclude in Caracas with President Chávez receiving them, as previously petitioned by the FARC as a condition.

Phase I

During the first phase two Russian made MI-17 helicopters from the Venezuelan Military Search and Rescue Team flew into Colombia on December 27, 2007 at 1530 hours with the permission of the President of Colombia and with the International Red Cross (IRC) insignia for a humanitarian mission. The helicopters flew over two hours from the Venezuelan town of Santo Domingo in the State of Táchira to the Colombian city of Villavicencio, capital of the Department of Meta, arriving at around 1730 hours.^[5]

The Colombian High Commissioner for Peace, Luis Carlos Restrepo, was scheduled to receive the IRC delegates and the Vice Chancellor for Latin America and the Caribbean, Rodolfo Sanz, in Villavicencio to coordinate the rescue operation.^[6]

At the end of the first phase Colombian President Alvaro Uribe said:

Phase II

Emmanuel found in Bogotá

On December 31, Hugo Chávez read a letter from FARC where the group claimed that the hostage release had been delayed because of Colombian military operations. Colombian President Álvaro Uribe indicated that FARC had not freed the three hostages because Emmanuel may not be in their hands anymore.^[8]

Colombian authorities added that a boy matching Emmanuel's description had been taken to a hospital in San José del Guaviare in June 2005. The boy was later sent to a foster home in Bogotá and DNA tests were announced in order to confirm his identity.^[9]

On January 4, the results of a mitochondrial DNA test, comparing the child's DNA with that of his potential grandmother Clara de Rojas, were revealed by the Colombian government. It was reported that there was a very high probability that the boy was indeed part of the Rojas family.^[10] A further analysis will be carried out in a Santiago de Compostela institute in order to verify the procedure, which could take up to two weeks.^[11][12]

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolás Maduro questioned the results, stating that Colombia did not allow Venezuelan specialists to conduct their own tests and had created a "cloak of doubt".^[13]

On January 4, the FARC released a communique in which they admitted that Emmanuel had been taken to Bogotá and "left in the care of honest persons" for safety reasons until a humanitarian exchange took place. The group accused President Uribe of "kidnapping" the child in order to sabotage his liberation.^{[14] [15]}

See also

• Colombia-Venezuela relations

References