French journalist missing in Colombia – embassy

BOGOTA – A French journalist went missing in Colombia on Saturday following a leftist rebel attack on an army column in the south of the country, a French embassy official told AFP.

The journalist, whose identity has not been revealed, was accompanying a military patrol in Caqueta province, where rebels of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) remain active.

Four people were killed during the attack and five others remain missing, military officials said.

“The journalist was accompanying the army unit in the course of an anti-drug operation when the unit came under attack from FARC forces,” said the embassy official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Colombian authorities have launched a search operation for the missing, the diplomat said.

Originally posted at 11:43 am | Sunday, April 29, 2012