National Liberation Army (ELN) rebels in Colombia have released two Dutch journalists who had been detained by the group for nearly a week.
Derk Bolt and Eugenio Follender were released from the Catatumbo area of northern Colombia's Norte de Santander department that borders Venezuela, a Dutch Foreign Ministry statement said on Saturday.
The Dutch ambassador had spoken with the two journalists, and the ministry had informed their families of their release, according to the statement.
"We've been in constant contact with the Colombians, who worked hard for the release," Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders said in the statement.
"I have a lot of appreciation and thanks for their contribution."
Bolt and Follender had been searching for the biological mother of a Colombian woman who was adopted by a Dutch couple when they were reported missing on June 19.
The ELN had said rebels had arrested the journalists "as a precaution" and had investigated what the pair was doing in Norte de Santander.
The ELN, which is believed to number between 1500 and 2000 fighters, has often carried out kidnappings and demanded ransoms as a way of financing itself.
"I am very pleased that the abduction has ended so quickly," Koenders said.
ELN said on Friday via their official radio station Ranpal that the journalists had been released.
The group then backtracked and said the two Dutch nationals remained in custody.
