Colombian rebels kidnap Catholic bishop

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) -- Colombia's smaller leftist rebel group abducted a Catholic bishop but planned to set him free bearing a political message for the government, church officials said Monday.
Monsignor Fabian Marulanda, secretary-general of the Bishop's Conference, said Misael Vaca Ramirez, the Bishop of Yopal, was taken by the National Liberation Army, or ELN, on Sunday near the town of Morcote, 220 miles northeast of the capital, Bogota.
He said the ELN had informed the church that Vaca Ramirez would be released unharmed at an unspecified date with a message for the government.
ELN leaders have been trying to find common ground recently for peace talks with the government. The group has led a 40-year-old insurrection against the government. The ELN kidnapped eight foreign backpackers from northern mountains in September but released them months later.
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