France's medical mission will remain in Bogota, the capital of Colombia, to await a response from Colombia's Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) on allowing treatment for French-Colombian hostage Ingrid Betancourt, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said Saturday .
"We had to do something. Now we are waiting for news from FARC," Kouchner told France 2 television channel, referring to a medical team that arrived in the Colombian capital Thursday.
The team, composed of medics from France, Spain and Switzerland, is waiting to hear whether FARC will let it enter a jungle camp to treat Betancourt, kidnapped by the group six years ago as she campaigned in the Colombian presidential election.
The anti-government group, which seeks to swap about 700 hostages for its 500 jailed members, said in a statement Thursday that Betancourt will not be released immediately.
"We have received very worrying information about the state of the health of Ingrid Betancourt and the other hostages," Kouchner said, adding that the medical mission will "stay put where it is" and the French government was "determined to wait it out."
Betancourt's supporters will hold demonstrations Sunday in Paris and other French cities to call upon the French government and the international community to press for her release.
Source: Xinhua
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