The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia released army General Ruben Dario Alzate and his fellow captives, Corporal Jorge Rodriguez and army adviser Gloria Urrego, on Sunday as it said it would, according to a Saturday statement.

The three men had been captured by the FARC rebels on Nov. 16 in the remote western region of Choco.

"We hope that the times favor this humanitarian mission, which today waves in the immensity of Atrato the white flag of Liberty and Peace," FARC said.

The news of their release was confirmed by Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos via his Twitter account. He stated that Alzate, Urrego and Rodriguez had been released and would be reunited with their families as soon as weather permitted.

On Nov. 16, President Santos suspended the latest round of peace talks between the Colombian government and the FARC rebels, making the release of the captives a condition to resume negotiations.

FARC, Latin America’s oldest rebel group, is thought to have an estimated 8,000 members operating across eastern Colombia and has been battling the Colombian government since 1964.

General Ruben Dario Alzate, 55, was the first general to be taken by the rebel group in a half-century of fighting.

On Thursday, according to Al Jazerra, FARC objected to the use of the word "kidnapping" to describe the general's capture, considering their captives as "prisoners of war" .

The Colombian government and the FARC have made several attempts at peace geared toward ending their 50-year conflict.

Angelika Rettberg, an expert on peace processes, has noted, according to Raw Story, that the swift manner in which the crisis was avoided illustrates how willing both sides were to avoid an escalation, which could lead to permanent damage.

“The peace process,” Rettberg said, “already was showing signs of inertia.”

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