ICRC announces release of Armenian held by Colombia’s ELN rebels

PanARMENIAN.Net - The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has confirmed the release of Armenian national Arsen Voskanyan, who was held by Resistance Front Cimarron ELN of Colombia.

According to authorities, Voskanyan was the only foreigner held by the guerrilla group in that part of the country, where abducted ex-congressman Odin Sánchez Montes de Oca has been kept since March 2016.

The Armenian, as the authorities assume, was kidnapped in Pizarro, Chocó where he was looking for golden frogs, an endemic species, in an apparent attempt to illegally ship them out of the country, Vanguardia reports.

Golden frogs produce deadly toxin used in laboratories across Europe to manufacture painkillers. They are sold by up to 1,500 euros each on the black market.