The Colombian National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrilla group has released former congressman Odin Sanchez after nearly a year in captivity. Sanchez was turned over to representatives of the Red Cross. The move clears the way for planned peace talks between the government and the ELN. Colombian chief negotiator Juan Camilo Restrepo and ELN leader Pablo Beltran two weeks ago announced that Sanchez would be released to meet a condition for the start of peace talks in Quito. Preliminary talks were held last month in the Ecuadoran capital. Negotiators set Tuesday as the planned start date for formal talks. Colombia had pegged the beginning of formal negotiations to Sanchez's release. Delays in his release have pushed back talks twice previously. The left-wing guerrilla group held Sanchez captive since March of 2016, when he volunteered to replace his brother, former Chaco state governor Patrocinio Sanchez, who had been held since August 2013 and had fallen ill in captivity. A peace agreement with the ELN would complete peacemaking efforts in the South American country. Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos' government and the ELN began informal contact in early 2014 and in March 2016 announced that they would negotiate. In November, Santos signed a final peace accord with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebel group. The accord ended a 52-year war that had left 220,000 dead and millions internally displaced.
