Colombian rebels agree to free general

Countries assisting peace talks between Colombia's government and leftist rebels said Wednesday night that an agreement has been reached to free a general whose capture jeopardized the negotiations.

A joint statement from Cuba and Norway said the two sides agreed "on the conditions for the release" of Colombian army General Ruben Dario Alzate and four others taken captive by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia in recent days.

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos immediately celebrated the accord, saying in a statement that government peace negotiators would return to Havana as soon as all the prisoners were released.

Source: AP