Colombia says rebels must free hostages before any peace talks

Colombia's President Juan Manuel Santos reacts during a bilateral meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington February 4, 2016. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts

BOGOTA (Reuters) - The National Liberation Army, Colombia's second-largest leftist rebel group, must release a civilian and a soldier held hostage before the government will agree to begin a peace process, President Juan Manuel Santos said on Monday.

The two sides have been holding preliminary talks for more than two years while the government negotiates a peace deal in Cuba with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, the country's better known leftist rebel group. The talks with FARC look set to reach a final deal in the coming months.