BOGOTA -- The Colombian army on Thursday rescued 10 peasants who had been kidnapped by FARC rebels on Dec. 20 in a rural part of the central province of Meta, a senior officer said.

The commander of the army's 4th Division, Gen. Luis Zapata, confirmed Thursday that the peasants were rescued in the Sumapaz area, not far from Bogota, and were being taken to the Colombian capital.

The men were kidnapped last month while playing soccer.

The general said that for now, the military had no information about the health of the rescued men and in the next few hours a press conference would be held where officials would provide more details of the operation.

The former hostages are peasants between the ages of 19 and 50 who were abducted by a unit of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, the Andean nation's biggest insurgency.

On the day of the mass kidnapping, the army began pursuing the rebels who had perpetrated the deed.