Colombian forensic experts yesterday began examining the body of a British citizen killed during clashes between army troops and left-wing rebels on Sunday in north-west Colombia.
The dead man, identified as Jeremy Parks (28), was with a column of National Liberation Army troops (ELN) when the attack occurred. The ELN, a left-wing rebel group, has an estimated 5,000 troops and has fought the government since the 1960s.
Colombian troops recovered two bodies during the fighting, one a suspected guerrilla without papers and the other carrying a British passport.
The Colombian army has yet to confirm whether the victim had been kidnapped by the rebels or whether he was fighting alongside them.
The rebels camouflage kidnap victims to make it more difficult for army troops to identify them when changing locations.
The British Embassy in Bogota confirmed that Jeremy Parks was registered as living in Bromley, Kent.
He entered Colombia last month, arriving from nearby Ecuador after visiting Peru and Cuba.