Sarkozy: Mission to help FARC hostages begins

PARIS, France (CNN) -- A humanitarian mission to help hostages held by Colombian rebels began as a hostage's son said his mother needs a blood transfusion, French President Nicolas Sarkozy's office said Wednesday.

In a vague, one-sentence statement posted on the president's Web site, France said a mission composed of Spain, France and Switzerland had begun "in liaison with the concerned authorities."

Among the hostages is former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, who has dual French citizenship. She is reported to be in failing health.

The statement from Sarkozy's office did not identify the authorities and did not say where the mission was headed or how many people were involved.

The statement came a day after Colombian President Alvaro Uribe announced Sarkozy's humanitarian mission to Colombia's jungles, intended to treat the hostages held by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC.

Betancourt's son, Lorenzo Delloye, said in Paris on Wednesday that his mother suffers from hepatitis B and "requires a blood transfusion within hours."

The state of her health is "very grave," he said. He confirmed that she began a hunger strike February 23, the sixth anniversary of her captivity, and said her refusal to eat or take medicines her jailers offer shows "she has not lost one ounce of combativeness."

"She will go to the very end," he said. "It is not surprising for the people who know my mother. She will go to the end. So now it is time that the FARC, the Colombian government and the entire international community do something."

Sarkozy made an urgent appeal for her release Tuesday.

"You who lead FARC, you now have a date with history," Sarkozy warned in a televised address with Spanish subtitles. "Don't miss it. Liberate Ingrid Betancourt and those hostages who are the weakest!"

Uribe offered few details about the mission Tuesday, saying only that he had promised the French president that Colombian military operations would be suspended in the area to help the mission's work and to guarantee its safe passage.

The Red Cross will be involved in the mission, Sarkozy said, according to Uribe.

However, Yves Heller, a spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross in Colombia, said Wednesday that it had had "yet to receive a specific request from FARC" to visit the hostages or help arrange their release.

As a neutral organization, the Red Cross, which has helped in the release of other FARC hostages, "works with all parties," said Heller.

Heller said the group would not be involved in this mission without a request from FARC.

FARC was established in 1964 as the military wing of the Colombian Communist party. It has long tried to justify hostage-taking as a military tactic in its drawn-out, complex battle with the Colombian government.

Several nations, including the United States and Colombia, classify it as a terrorist group.

The group currently holds roughly 750 hostages. In deals brokered by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, the rebels have freed six hostages in the past three months.

In addition to Betancourt, who is probably the best-known of the hostages, the high-profile captives include three American defense contractors whom FARC has held since 2003. E-mail to a friend

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