U.S. military was readying Ecuador hostage rescue.
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U.S. military was readying Ecuador hostage rescue.
U.S. Force Was Poised for Ecuador Hostage Rescue
MIAMI (Reuters) - An elite U.S. military unit was put on standby in February for a mission to rescue four Americans held by kidnappers who had already killed one American in the Amazonian jungles of Ecuador, the Miami Herald reported Monday.
The kidnappers, who also held hostage an Argentine, a Chilean and a New Zealander, were threatening to kill another American unless a ransom deal was reached by Feb. 15, prompting a Delta Force commando team to ready for an operation.
"It was all 'go' when I went to bed on the 14th. I expected to wake up the next morning, turn on the TV and watch the reports on CNN,'' one U.S. official was quoted as saying.
But the rescue attempt was never launched. On the eve of the deadline, the kidnappers and negotiators agreed on a $13 million ransom for the seven hostages, the newspaper said. The men were finally released on March 1.
The hostages were part of a group of 10 foreign workers abducted from a Repsol-YPF oil field in Ecuador's central Amazon region, about 50 miles south of the Colombian border, on Oct. 12.
Two French helicopter pilots escaped a few days after the kidnapping. An eighth, U.S. citizen Ron Sander, was shot dead on Jan. 31 after the companies for whom the hostages worked failed to a meet a ransom demand.
The kidnappers were believed to be a faction of Colombia's National Liberation Army guerrilla force supported by local Ecuadorians.
The Herald said its report was based on interviews with a dozen U.S. and Ecuadorian government officials and employees of the companies involved.
There was no immediate comment from U.S. officials.
Rescue missions by U.S. forces are rare. It was a Delta Force unit that set out to rescue 53 hostages held by Iranian radicals at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in 1980. That mission was aborted after a helicopter and a transport plane collided in a desert staging area, killing eight would-be rescuers.
The operation to rescue the hostages from the Ecuadorian jungle was twice rejected by U.S. officials, the Herald said.
It was revived as the ransom talks dragged on, negotiating teams representing the different companies argued among themselves and the kidnappers threatened to kill a second hostage.
The kidnappers had originally demanded an $80 million ransom. The Herald quoted security experts as saying they had no political motives and merely wanted the money.
Rescue Mission Rejected
A rescue mission was first mooted in November. A U.S. Army intelligence unit believed it had pinpointed the kidnappers' camp. More information was gleaned when Ecuadorian police captured a peasant who worked as a cook for the kidnappers.
FBI (news - web sites) officials twice suggested calling in a Delta force, Navy SEALs or its own hostage rescue team but the idea was rejected.
The Miami-based U.S. Southern Command, in charge of U.S. military operations in Latin America, concluded that a rescue mission would be too risky because the hostages were being held in deep jungle. U.S. officials were also concerned such an operation could unleash a wave of anti-American sentiment.
The kidnappers killed Sander on Jan. 31, leaving his bullet-riddled body wrapped in a white sheet with "I am a gringo. For nonpayment of ransom'' scrawled on it.
The negotiators raised their offer from $4 million, to $9 million, then to $10.5 million. The kidnappers dropped their demand to $20 million then threatened to kill another hostage unless a deal was reached by Feb. 15.
The U.S. National Security Council then put the Delta Force commando unit on a two-hour alert for a rescue mission -- meaning they should be packed and ready to deploy at two hours notice.
As the deadline loomed, negotiators upped their offer to $13 million. The kidnappers accepted. The money was dropped over the jungle by helicopter in a jungle clearing.
MIAMI (Reuters) - An elite U.S. military unit was put on standby in February for a mission to rescue four Americans held by kidnappers who had already killed one American in the Amazonian jungles of Ecuador, the Miami Herald reported Monday.
The kidnappers, who also held hostage an Argentine, a Chilean and a New Zealander, were threatening to kill another American unless a ransom deal was reached by Feb. 15, prompting a Delta Force commando team to ready for an operation.
"It was all 'go' when I went to bed on the 14th. I expected to wake up the next morning, turn on the TV and watch the reports on CNN,'' one U.S. official was quoted as saying.
But the rescue attempt was never launched. On the eve of the deadline, the kidnappers and negotiators agreed on a $13 million ransom for the seven hostages, the newspaper said. The men were finally released on March 1.
The hostages were part of a group of 10 foreign workers abducted from a Repsol-YPF oil field in Ecuador's central Amazon region, about 50 miles south of the Colombian border, on Oct. 12.
Two French helicopter pilots escaped a few days after the kidnapping. An eighth, U.S. citizen Ron Sander, was shot dead on Jan. 31 after the companies for whom the hostages worked failed to a meet a ransom demand.
The kidnappers were believed to be a faction of Colombia's National Liberation Army guerrilla force supported by local Ecuadorians.
The Herald said its report was based on interviews with a dozen U.S. and Ecuadorian government officials and employees of the companies involved.
There was no immediate comment from U.S. officials.
Rescue missions by U.S. forces are rare. It was a Delta Force unit that set out to rescue 53 hostages held by Iranian radicals at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in 1980. That mission was aborted after a helicopter and a transport plane collided in a desert staging area, killing eight would-be rescuers.
The operation to rescue the hostages from the Ecuadorian jungle was twice rejected by U.S. officials, the Herald said.
It was revived as the ransom talks dragged on, negotiating teams representing the different companies argued among themselves and the kidnappers threatened to kill a second hostage.
The kidnappers had originally demanded an $80 million ransom. The Herald quoted security experts as saying they had no political motives and merely wanted the money.
Rescue Mission Rejected
A rescue mission was first mooted in November. A U.S. Army intelligence unit believed it had pinpointed the kidnappers' camp. More information was gleaned when Ecuadorian police captured a peasant who worked as a cook for the kidnappers.
FBI (news - web sites) officials twice suggested calling in a Delta force, Navy SEALs or its own hostage rescue team but the idea was rejected.
The Miami-based U.S. Southern Command, in charge of U.S. military operations in Latin America, concluded that a rescue mission would be too risky because the hostages were being held in deep jungle. U.S. officials were also concerned such an operation could unleash a wave of anti-American sentiment.
The kidnappers killed Sander on Jan. 31, leaving his bullet-riddled body wrapped in a white sheet with "I am a gringo. For nonpayment of ransom'' scrawled on it.
The negotiators raised their offer from $4 million, to $9 million, then to $10.5 million. The kidnappers dropped their demand to $20 million then threatened to kill another hostage unless a deal was reached by Feb. 15.
The U.S. National Security Council then put the Delta Force commando unit on a two-hour alert for a rescue mission -- meaning they should be packed and ready to deploy at two hours notice.
As the deadline loomed, negotiators upped their offer to $13 million. The kidnappers accepted. The money was dropped over the jungle by helicopter in a jungle clearing.
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This may sound a little 'gung ho', but I would go in there and waste the lot of them as soon as I knew the hostages were freed.
There could be no way of stopping them from doing it again with worse consequences.
And who were they -- WHO CARES ! Its a cheep 13 million if it never happens again.
There could be no way of stopping them from doing it again with worse consequences.
And who were they -- WHO CARES ! Its a cheep 13 million if it never happens again.
