The state officials are set to meet the representatives of ELN in Ecuador in late October, both sides confirmed on Monday.

The Colombian ELN or National Liberation Front is estimated to have between 1,500 and 2,000 fighters, putting its force at around one-quarter of the more influential FARC.

"Peace won't slip through our fingers," President Juan Manuel Santos said after the Monday announcement. "On the contrary, it will be stronger, and now that we will advance with the ELN, it will be complete."

Earlier on Monday, ELN handed one of their hostages to the International Red Cross, marking a third such instance in the last two weeks. The group still holds at least two people, including a prominent politician Odin Sanchez who handed himself over to the group in April. In doing so, Sanchez secured the release of his brother Patrocinio Sanchez, a former governor whose health was failing after spending years in ELN captivity.

The leftist group largely raises money by extortion and kidnapping. The fate of hostages has proven to be major stumbling block since the government first opened the peace talks in 2014. According to some sources, the guerilla group is now planning on liberating all of its captives.

President Santos adressing the nation after the ELN announcement

Uribe pushes for tougher deal

The talks with the ELN, however, took a back seat with the government's bid to end the decades-long war with FARC. Although both sides managed to sign a peace deal two weeks ago, the public narrowly rejected the accord in a shock vote several days later. The opponents of the deal claim it was too lenient to the guerilla faction.

Former president Alvaro Uribe, who led the "no" campaign, urged the government on Monday to change the deal and set harsher terms for surrendering FARC leaders.

The original deal envisioned the group handing over their weapons and confessing their crimes, and restraining the movement of more serious offenders to designated areas for the next eight years. The deal would also give the group seats in the parliament and declare immunity from traditional jail sentences. Some members would still receive unconventional punishments, like clearing landmines.

Time 'biggest enemy'

Uribe, however, wants the criminals locked up for a minimum of five years, although the place of internment could be an agricultural farm. He also called for FARC representatives to be barred from holding public office, and for thousands of militia members to help destroy cocoa crops.

In response, the current president Santos urged Uribe's camp to be realistic in mending the accord, which is almost 300-pages long and took nearly four years to negotiate.

"We have to work with speed and promptness because our biggest enemy now is time," Santos said. "The eyes of the world are upon us and they expect the best."

Latin America's longest armed conflict comes to an end How the insurgency started In 1948, the assassination of populist leader Jorge Eliecer Gaitan sparked political chaos in Colombia known as "the violence." Tens of thousands died and peasant groups joined with communists to arm themselves. Later in 1964, a military attack on the insurgency's main encampment led to the creation of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC.

Latin America's longest armed conflict comes to an end What the rebels wanted FARC's political ideology has never been well defined. Initially, it sought to weaken the oligarchy's grip on power. The rebels also wanted land reforms in a country where more than 5 million people have been forcibly displaced, mostly by far-right militias. However, the group lost popularity as it turned to kidnapping and illegal gold mining for funds.

Latin America's longest armed conflict comes to an end How the US got involved To help the Colombian security forces fight against the insurgency and to counter drug-trafficking, the US began sending billions of dollars under Plan Colombia. The US State Department classifies the group as a terrorist organization and its leaders face US indictments.

Latin America's longest armed conflict comes to an end The human cost of the conflict Latin America's longest-running armed conflict is responsible for the death an estimated 220,000 people, while millions of Colombians have been displaced within their country. According to Bogota’s estimates, there are 7.6 million direct and indirect victims of the conflict. The country has more landmine victims than any country except for Afghanistan.

Latin America's longest armed conflict comes to an end Peace accord after decades of failed attempts Peace talks between FARC and the government collapsed in the mid 1980s after at least 3,000 allies of FARC's political wing Patriotic Union Party were killed at the hands of right-wing paramilitaries. Efforts fell short again in 2002 after the rebels hijacked an airliner to kidnap a senator. The latest round of talks started in 2012 in Havana and culminated on August 24, 2016 with a deal.

Latin America's longest armed conflict comes to an end 50 years of conflict "We have reached a final, integral and definitive agreement" to end the conflict and build a stable, lasting peace, the government of President Juan Manuel Santos and the left-wing Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia said in a joint statement. In June, the negotiators had already announced a cease-fire agreement and a blueprint for how the estimated 7,000 to 8,000 fighters will demobilize. Author: Aasim Saleem



dj/bw (AP, AFP, Reuters)