PARIS (Reuters) - Ingrid Betancourt urged Colombian rebels to free all hostages as she addressed a rally in the French capital on Sunday that was part of a series of demonstrations around the world to protest against kidnappings.
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Thousands gathered near the Eiffel Tower to hear Betancourt, a Franco-Colombian politician rescued from captivity this month after spending more than six years as a hostage of Colombian rebel forces.
“We want freedom for everyone,” said Betancourt, drawing loud applause from the crowd, many of whom chanted the Spanish word for freedom “Libertad!”.
Betancourt’s speech, delivered in Spanish, was shown on television in Colombia, which is also preparing to hold a mass anti-kidnapping rally on its national day.
Hundreds of Colombians gathered in Madrid’s Plaza Mayor over the weekend to call for peace in Colombia and to celebrate Betancourt’s liberation.
A smiling Betancourt was flanked on the Paris stage by her mother and various artists and singers.
She called for an end to the conflict between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). She also read out a list of names of those still held by the FARC and called for their release.
The FARC has been fighting a socialist insurgency for 44 years, mainly financed since the 1980s by the cocaine trade.
Betancourt and 14 other hostages were freed after Colombian military agents tricked FARC fighters into handing the group over to them. The agents pretended to be non-governmental workers acting as go-betweens for the FARC leadership.
She is a popular figure in France and was awarded one of France’s top honors by President Nicolas Sarkozy this month.
Hundreds of people marched in support of Betancourt during her time in captivity 
Íngrid Betancourt, a former Senator in Colombia who was being held captive by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) until her rescue as part of Operation Jaque, has called for FARC to release all its hostages.

"We want freedom for everyone," said Betancourt while speaking to a crowd of thousands in Paris, France. This was followed by chants of "Libertad", the Spanish word for freedom.

Thousands of people also marched through streets in Colombia after the broadcast of Betancourt's speech on Colombian television.

Betancourt was one of the 15 hostages rescued on July 2 by the Colombian army, who tricked FARC into handing over the hostages by pretending to be part of a non-governmental organization. She was kidnapped in February 2002 while campaigning for President of Colombia.

Despite the release of fifteen prisoners in Operation Jaque, FARC are still holding over seven hundred people in captivity. 

Betancourt also called for the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, abducted by Palestinian gunmen on 25 June 2006 and held hostage by Hamas since. Shalit holds a French citizenship and has been denied rights to Red Cross (ICRC) visitation.