The father of Liverpool footballer Luis Diaz has been freed by his captors in Colombia – almost two weeks after being kidnapped.
Luis Manuel Diaz was released by guerrillas from the National Liberation Army (ELN), according to the Colombian FA.
Local TV channels showed him at an airstrip after landing in a helicopter – and images of his family members crying with happiness.
Image: Luis Manuel Diaz waves after his release. Pic: AP
Image: Luis Manuel Diaz was checked by medics
Image: The father of Luis Manuel Diaz receives the good news. Pic: AP
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Diaz’s parents were abducted by armed men on motorcycles at a petrol station in the town of Barrancas, near Colombia’s border with Venezuela on 28 October.
The 26-year-old footballer’s mother, Cilenis Marulanda, was rescued within hours by police after roadblocks were set up.
Special forces were deployed to search for Mr Diaz – with air and land patrols trawling a mountain range that straddles both Colombiaand Venezuela.
Officials said they could not rule out the possibility that he had been smuggled over the border – meaning he would have been out of reach of Colombian police.
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A reward of $48,000 (£39,000) had been offered for information leading police to the hostage.
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Search for footballer’s kidnapped father
The Liverpool winger had pleaded with his father’s captors to release him – and said he and his brothers were in a “desperate” situation.
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The ELN had given hope to the footballer, his family and those connected to Liverpool FC after they said the kidnapping was a mistake and had ordered his release.
On Sunday, the guerrilla group said these plans had been stifled by military deployments in the north of Colombia,and it could not guarantee his safety in those conditions.
A day later, the Colombian military said that it was shifting its positions to facilitate a release.
Kidnapping ‘should never have happened’
Those negotiating peace talks with the ELN celebrated Mr Diaz’s freedom – but made it clear the kidnapping “should never have happened”.
All people being held by the ELN must be liberated, the statement added, though it did not give a figure for the remaining hostages.
The Colombian FA thanked the government, the military, authorities and everyone involved in securing Mr Diaz’s release, adding: “Behind a ball, the dreams and illusions of boys and girls, young people, women, men and adult soccer players, their loved ones and an entire country roll.
“Football is passion in peace. Let no one ever think of attacking that reality again.”
Colombian President Gustavo Petro added: “Long live freedom and peace.”
Image: Luis Diaz came off the bench for Liverpool at Luton over the weekend scoring a last-minute emotional goal
Diaz came off the bench to save Liverpool from a shock defeat at Luton on Sunday, claiming a stoppage-time equaliser to snatch a 1-1 draw.
He lifted his shirt in celebration to reveal a message on a white T-shirt that read “libertad para papa” or “freedom for my father”.
The kidnapping of Diaz’s father disrupted the Colombian government’s peace talks with the ELN, which restarted last year in hopes of ending a 60-year conflict that has killed at least 450,000 people.
Donald Trump has criticised Vladimir Putin and suggested a shift in his stance towards the Russian president after a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy before the Pope’s funeral.
The Ukrainian president said the one-on-one talks could prove to be “historic” after pictures showed him sitting opposite Mr Trump, around two feet apart, in the large marble hall inside St Peter’s Basilica.
The US president said he doubted his Russian counterpart’s willingness to end the war after leaving Rome after the funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, he said “there was no reason” for the Russian president “to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days”.
Image: The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
He added: “It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?’ Too many people are dying!!!”
The meeting between the US and Ukrainian leaders was their first face-to-face encounter since a very public row in the Oval Office in February.
Mr Zelenskyy said he had a good meeting with Mr Trump in which they talked about the defence of the Ukrainian people, a full and unconditional ceasefire, and a durable and lasting peace that would prevent the war restarting.
Other images released by the Ukrainian president’s office show Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron were present for part of the talks, which were described as “positive” by the French presidency.
Mr Zelenskyy‘s spokesman said the meeting lasted for around 15 minutes and he and Mr Trump had agreed to hold further discussions later on Saturday.
Image: The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Image: Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Basilica
But the US president left Rome for Washington on Air Force One soon after the funeral without any other talks having taken place.
The Ukrainian president’s office said there was no second meeting in Rome because of the tight schedule of both leaders, although he had separate discussions with Mr Starmer and Mr Macron.
The French president said in a post on X “Ukraine is ready for an unconditional ceasefire” and that a so-called coalition of the willing, led by the UK and France, would continue working to achieve a lasting peace.
There was applause from some of the other world leaders in attendance at the Vatican when Mr Zelenskyy walked out of St Peter’s Basilica after stopping in front of the pontiff’s coffin to pay his respects.
Image: Donald Trump and the Ukrainian president met for the first time since their Oval Office row. Pic: Reuters
Sir Tony Brenton, the former British ambassador to Russia, said the event presents diplomatic opportunities, including the “biggest possible meeting” between Mr Trump and the Ukrainian leader.
He told Sky News it could mark “an important step” in starting the peace process between Russia and Ukraine.
Professor Father Francesco Giordano told Sky News the meeting is being called “Pope Francis’s miracle” by members of the clergy, adding: “There’s so many things that happened today – it was just overwhelming.”
The bilateral meeting comes after Mr Trump’s peace negotiator Steve Witkoff held talks with Mr Putin at the Kremlin.
They discussed “the possibility of resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine”, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.
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On an extraordinary day, remarkable pictures on the margins that capture what may be a turning point for the world.
In a corner of St Peter’s Basilica before the funeral of Pope Francis, the leaders of America and Ukraine sit facing each other in two solitary chairs.
They look like confessor and sinner except we cannot tell which one is which.
In another, the Ukrainian president seems to be remonstrating with the US president. This is their first encounter since their infamous bust-up in the Oval Office.
Image: The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
Other pictures show the moment their French and British counterparts introduced the two men. There is a palpable sense of nervousness in the way the leaders engage.
We do not know what the two presidents said in their brief meeting.
But in the mind of the Ukrainian leader will be the knowledge President Trump has this week said America will reward Russia for its unprovoked brutal invasion of his country, under any peace deal.
Mr Trump has presented Ukraine and Russia with a proposal and ultimatum so one-sided it could have been written in the Kremlin.
Kyiv must surrender the land Russia has taken by force, Crimea forever, the rest at least for now. And it must submit to an act of extortion, a proposed deal that would hand over half its mineral wealth effectively to America.
Image: The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Afterwards, Zelenskyy said it had been a good meeting that could turn out to be historic “if we reach results together”.
They had talked, he said, about the defence of Ukraine, a full and unconditional ceasefire and a durable and lasting peace that will prevent a war restarting.
The Trump peace proposal includes only unspecified security guarantees for Ukraine from countries that do not include the US. It rules out any membership of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s allies are watching closely to see if Mr Trump will apply any pressure on Vladimir Putin, let alone punish him for recent bloody attacks on Ukraine.
Or will he simply walk away if the proposal fails, blaming Ukrainian intransigence, however outrageously, before moving onto a rapprochement with Moscow.
If he does, America’s role as guarantor of international security will be seen effectively as over.
This could be the week we see the world order as we have known it since the end of the Second World War buried, as well as a pope.