The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) confirmed Thursday it received from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) Colombian former lawmaker Sigifredo Lopez, who has been held captive for nearly seven years.

The delivery was made at a rural place in the southwestern state of Cauca, said the ICRC spokesman in Colombia Yves Heller, reading a statement in the airport of southwest city of Cali.

Heller thanked the parties that participated in Lopez's humanitarian release.

Lopez arrived at Cali airport, where he was welcomed by his wife Patricia Nieto, his two children and friends. He did not make any declaration to the press.

The efforts to secure the release of Lopez were aided by Brazil which offered two helicopters.

According to Colombian Senator Piedad Cordoba, the bad weather in the region impeded the helicopters to take off earlier.

Cordoba, mediator in the release of six hostages since Sunday, said the meeting with FARC was difficult because the place where Lopez would be released was not accessible for the helicopter.

"We had to jump out of the helicopter to make contact with the guerilla, and we stayed there for one hour and a half. We also had to climb up back to the helicopter since it was in the air," Cordoba said.

This is the third release from FARC in a week. On Sunday, the rebel group released three police officers and a soldier, and freed on Tuesday former Meta Department governor Alan Jara, who had been kidnapped for more than seven years.

Lopez was kidnapped together with 11 other deputies on April 11,2002, when FARC entered the regional legislative building in Cali and kidnapped 12 legislators.

FARC said on June 28, 2007, that 11 of the deputies died in a crossfire, while Lopez survived as he was sick then and kept in another FARC camp.

Cordoba did not make any comments on the death of the 11 deputies, saying Lopez will give a press conference to tell details of his kidnapping.

She said she sent a letter to FARC's military chief Jorge Briceno, alias "Mono Jojoy", during one of the hostages' release, requesting him to release more hostages.

Since 2008, Colombian government has been in letter contact with FARC which announced in December 2008 that it would release the six hostages.

FARC, the biggest rebel group in Colombia, has been trying to topple the Bogota government since the 1960s. It has attracted worldwide attention for the high-profile hostages it has been holding. It is estimated that it still holds a total of 700 hostages.

Source:Xinhua