CRI听力:Rebels Hold Colombian General, Urge Ceasefire

Columbia's FARC rebel group is calling for a resumption of the previous ceasefire agreement as one of the conditions for the release of a Columbian Army General.

The rebels kidnapped General Ruben Dario Alzate over the weekend in western Columbia.

FARC negotiator Rubin Morro has read out a communiqué in Havana, hinting at dire consequences for Alzate should the ceasefire not be restored.

"There are important issues pending for General Alzate with popular justice. His case will surely merit careful consideration in which many things will have to be taken into account."

FARC negotiators have not said what actions they may take when it comes to Alzate.

However, rebel negotiator Pablo Catatumbo, has since moved to try to soften the tone of the communique.

"We are not setting any conditions, we are simply insisting on something which we have been proposing for months, that it is not sensible, and it leads to exactly these kinds of situations, the persistence on the part of the government to continue peace talks in the midst of war."

Peace talks between the Colombian government and FARC have been suspended in the wake of the kidnapping.

Columbian President Juan Manuel Santos is demanding the release of the General as a condition for resuming the peace talks.

Talks between the Columbian government and the rebels have slowed significantly since Santos' re-election earlier this year.