More than 100 soldiers with sniffer dogs have been deployed by Colombian authorities to search for four Indigenous children who went missing after an airplane crash in the Amazon on May 1. The crash killed three adults, including the pilot and the children’s mother. The children, aged 13, nine, four and 11 months, are believed to have been wandering through the jungle in the southern Caqueta department since the crash. Colombian President Gustavo Petro retracted his claim that the children had been found alive after giving no details about their supposed rescue on Twitter on Wednesday night.
Petro apologised for the confusion and said that the military forces and indigenous communities would continue their search until the children were found. Avianline Charters, owner of the crashed aircraft, had previously said that one of its pilots in the search area was told the children had been found and were being transported by boat downriver. However, there has been no official confirmation that the children are out of danger. Petro said on Thursday that news of the supposed rescue had been provided by the government’s Institute of Family Welfare.
