Bogota, Jan 17 (EFE).– The 17 fishermen kidnapped by the National Liberation Army, or ELN, guerrilla group were rescued in an operation conducted by the Colombian army, President Juan Manuel Santos said Sunday.

The ELN, Colombia’s second-largest leftist rebel group, kidnapped the fishermen on Saturday.

“Fishermen taken by the ELN for supposed punishment rescued. Congratulations to Colombia’s army, now to get those responsible,” Santos said in a Twitter post.

A total of 17 people, including two minors, were kidnapped as they headed to fish in the Simoa swamp, located near Morales, a city in the northern province of Bolivar, 48th Jungle Battalion commander Lt. Col. Jaime Guio Ochoa told RCN Radio on Saturday.

The fishermen were rescued in an air assault, the Defense Ministry said in a Twitter post.

The ELN operates in Morales and the surrounding area, which is swampy and rich in minerals, and is plagued by illegal mining.

The government and the ELN started exploratory talks for a peace process in January 2014 in Havana, but the dialogue has not led to negotiations like those between Bogota and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC. EFE