Two Dutch journalists kidnapped in Colombia by ELN rebel

Two Dutch journalists were kidnapped by Marxist National Liberation Army (ELN) rebels in Colombia in an area near the Venezuelan border, the military confirmed on Monday, according to the Reuters.

Derk Johannes Bolt, 62, a television journalist, and Eugenio Ernest Marie, 58, a television cameraman, were captured at the weekend in El Tarra in Norte de Santander, said the military statement.

They were on the way to seek the mother of a Colombian child who was adopted in the Netherlands a few years ago for a program.

The Norte de Santander area is controlled by the second biggest insurgent group in the country.

The organization kidnapped a Spanish journalist, a long-term Colombia resident, in the same area last year, but the hostage was freed six days later.

The Colombian government has called for the immediate release of the journalists, while dispatching armed forces to the area for search and rescue operations.

(CGTN)