LUIS Manuel Díaz Jimenez, the father of Liverpool winger Luis Diaz, was finally released on Thursday, 12 days after he was kidnapped by ELN guerrillas in Colombia.
Colombian media report that the 58-year-old is now safe in the hands of a United Nations (UN) committee.
The release happened after it was agreed that a commission from the UN and the Catholic Church would liaise with the ELN.
Footage showed helicopters circling the border area between La Guajira and Cesar, where the kidnappers would hand over Luiz Jimenez.
The helicopter was waiting at the Valledupar airport after it was agreed that the ELN would hand over the hostage to the committee somewhere in the Serranía del Perijá.
Only humanitarian workers and the helicopter crew were allowed onboard the aircraft, which is set to take Diaz’s father to a hospital for a checkup following his ordeal.
Meanwhile, the Colombian government announced on Wednesday that the operation to release Luiz Jimenez had already begun but it was actually today that Diaz’s father was freed.
