Paraguayan rebel group frees 2 kidnapped Mennonite men

ASUNCION, Paraguay –  Paraguayan authorities say a small rebel group has released two Mennonite men that it kidnapped four months ago.

Authorities said Monday that Mexican citizen Franz Hiebert and Paraguayan Bernhard Blatz were released in the state of Concepcion, about 250 miles (400 kilometers) north of the Paraguayan capital.

The Paraguayan People's Army had demanded a joint $1 million ransom for their release, but their families said they didn't have the money. The rebel group asked them instead to distribute food to poor rural communities in exchange for their release.

Hiebert is being treated for infections and other injuries at a hospital in Asuncion.

Attacks by the guerrilla group have claimed the lives of 27 civilians, 13 police officers and 21 soldiers since 2008.