VILLAVICENCIO, Colombia—A Venezuelan helicopter mission to rescue three hostages held for years by Colombian rebels in jungle camps was delayed again on Saturday because guerrilla leaders have not given the final go-ahead.
Foreign envoys flew to the central Colombian town of Villavicencio close to a rebel stronghold on Saturday to observe the effort, but the handover was not expected for at least a day.
After weeks of promising to release two former Colombian politicians and the young son born to one of them in captivity, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, has not yet revealed their location, the Venezuelan government said.
Hugo Chavez, the leftist firebrand president of neighboring Venezuela, negotiated the rescue effort with the FARC and initially hoped to have the hostages freed on Thursday.
Chavez sent two helicopters into Colombia on Friday, but they remained grounded in flat, hot and humid Villavicencio at the foot of the Andes mountains waiting to learn the location of the captives.
Ramon Rodriguez, the Venezuelan government organizer of the rescue plan, said he did not know when the guerrillas would give the geographic coordinates of the handover point, which is likely to be in jungle region controlled by the FARC.
"I hope to know them soon," he said.
Former Argentine President Nestor Kirchner and officials from France and Switzerland were among the envoys who flew to Colombia in executive jets. U.S. film director Oliver Stone, who is working on a movie about Latin America, was expected to join them.
Although wary of Chavez and his goal of uniting South America under socialism, Colombia's conservative government has let him fly Venezuelan aircraft painted with the colors of the International Committee of the Red Cross deep into its territory to collect the hostages.
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