Tourist kidnappings in Colombia

Authorities in Colombia announced yesterday that six tourists, one Norwegian and five Colombians, have been kidnapped by Colombia's rebel group, The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), in the province of Choco on the Pacific coast. The group of 19 tourists was travelling by boat when they were intercepted by guerrilla patrol at Morromico. All of the tourists were robbed but only six were taken hostage. The kidnapping comes days after FARC brokered a deal that led to the freeing of two high-profile Colombian hostages.  We rate the threat of kidnapping in Colombia as extreme and currently advises against all travel to the country. The group is mainly confined to jungle areas but has also carried out sporadic attacks in a number of cities. The threat is particularly extreme in the Putumayo, Arauca, Narino, Caqueta, Guaviare and Norte de Santander departments of Colombia and in the rural departments of Sucre, Bolivar, Choco, Antioquia, Valle de Cauca, Cauca and Huila.