Operation Jaque - Operation Details

Operation Details

The intelligence gathering for the operation began long before it was actually carried out; according to one American official, Colombia had managed to place a mole within the FARC itself one year, if not more, before the operation. According to a colonel involved in the operation, Colombia had located the hostages roughly four months before the rescue. Between this time and the actual mission, Colombian forces spotted five of the hostages while they were bathing in the Apaporis river (including the three Americans), leading them to plant motion-sensors and video cameras along the waterway. At one point a FARC guerilla accidentally kicked a device while walking in the jungle to relieve himself; however, the surveillance operation's cover was not blown.

The idea of tricking the FARC into regrouping the hostages was seriously considered in late May, and the following month General Freddy Padilla de Leon brought the rescue plan to his civilian superiors. Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos is said to have agreed quickly to the plan; President Álvaro Uribe, after weighing the possible diplomatic consequences, also approved it.

Santos said the FARC rebels had been tricked into handing over the hostages by soldiers posing as members of a fictitious non-government organisation that supposedly would fly the captives to a camp to meet rebel leader Alfonso Cano; to prepare for the role, they took acting classes for a week and a half. Two soldiers impersonated a cameraman and journalist from pan-Latin American TV station teleSUR, two posed as fellow guerilla fighters, and four troops dressed as aid workers. Several aspects of the mission were apparently designed to mimic previous Venezuelan hostage transfers, including the actual composition of the group and the type and markings of the helicopters used.

According to Betancourt, the hostages were moved early on the morning of July 2 across the river to a landing zone where they were told by their captors that they were going to be moved to a different location.

Two Mi-17 helicopters came to the landing area in Guaviare, where one, carrying Colombian agents wearing Che Guevara T-shirts, landed to pick up the hostages. In total the helicopter spent 22 minutes on the ground, during which time the hostages were handcuffed and loaded aboard; the pilot and copilot communicated with fellow security personnel in code.

The local FARC commander César and an additional rebel boarded the helicopters along with the hostages. They were persuaded to hand over their pistols and were subdued in the air by Colombian forces. Betancourt later told a press conference she at first had had no idea she was being rescued until she saw her captor naked and blindfolded on the floor of the aircraft. She and the others were told: "Somos el Ejército Nacional. ¡Ustedes están en libertad!" (We are the national army. You are free).

In case of failure, Colombia had prepared an armada of 39 helicopters to ferry 2000 troops plus U.S. advisors. They would have been brought within a half-mile of the original landing zone in under 15 minutes.