101 Days in the Jungle: Four Israeli Backpacker Hostages in Colombia
Four young Israeli travelers kidnapped by the ELN guerrilla group in the Colombian jungle in 2003 were released after 101 days of captivity, following arduous negotiations and the release of an imprisoned rebel leader.
The journey of young Israelis traveling abroad after completing their military service is typically accompanied by a long list of parental warnings. Beyond guarding passports against pickpockets or avoiding suspicious food, the remote possibility of being kidnapped in the depths of the Colombian jungle by a local guerrilla organization was surely the last thing on the minds of the families of Orpaz Ohayon, Erez Altuve, Beni Daniel, and Ido Guy. Yet, this terrifying scenario became a stark reality for the four young Israelis, whose ordeal is revisited in the podcast "Ose Historiya" examining the notorious Lost City trekking route in northern Colombia.
The town of Santa Marta has long offered travelers a dramatic landscape where coastal mountain ridges rise straight from the Caribbean Sea to snow-capped peaks nearly 5,800 meters high, serving as the primary base for treks into the dense jungle. Among the most popular routes is the four-to-five-day trek to the "Lost City," an ancient and fascinating archaeological site. In mid-September 2003, a group of fifteen tourists embarking on this trek was ambushed and abducted by members of the National Liberation Army, known by its Spanish acronym ELN. Among the hikers were six Israeli citizens.
Captivity in the Jungle and the ELN
Within hours of the abduction, the kidnappers released seven hostages, including two Israelis, leaving eight captives behind: four Israelis, two Britons, one Spaniard, and one German. "They arrived at four-thirty in the morning. Everyone was sleeping, and then you wake up with a rifle pointed at your face," Guy recalled in an interview with Israeli media. The ELN is a Marxist guerrilla and terrorist organization active in Colombia since the mid-1960s. Funding its operations through extortion, drug trafficking, and kidnappings for ransom, the group has abducted more than 3,000 people since the turn of the millennium, resulting in the deaths of at least 153 hostages.
The official motive behind the kidnapping of the eight travelers was to pressure Colombian authorities into releasing the group's imprisoned leader, Francisco Galán. The hostages were marched deep into the jungle, enduring harsh weather conditions, heavy rainfall, and severe food shortages while constantly moving to evade potential rescue operations. The Israeli hostages, drawing on their recent military backgrounds, proved notably more active in planning potential escape attempts compared to their European counterparts, who largely rejected involvement in such initiatives.
Release After 101 Days
As weeks turned into months, families back home endured agonizing uncertainty. Two months into the captivity, the ELN allowed the hostages to record a video as proof of life, creating a profound dilemma for the Israelis: whether to reveal their harsh reality to prompt a rescue or maintain a facade to protect their families from further anguish. Ultimately, after grueling negotiations involving the Colombian government, the United Nations, and the release of Galán, the nightmare ended on December 22, 2003. After 101 days in captivity, the hostages were brought to a rendezvous point in the Sierra Nevada mountains, airlifted by Red Cross helicopters to Bogotá, and flown home to Israel. Despite the severe trauma, the four men successfully rebuilt their lives, while the Lost City trek remains a regulated destination in Colombia today.
