France secures release of French-Chilean yoga teacher held in Venezuela

PARIS (AP) – France’s government on Sunday announced the release of a French-Chilean national who had been held for four months in Venezuela.

A tired-looking Camilo Castro was flown back to France, landing Sunday at Paris’ Orly airport. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot credited the country’s diplomacy for obtaining Castro’s release from prison.

In a post on X, President Emmanuel Macron expressed relief that Castro was free.

“France sometimes advances quietly, but always with determination and composure: That is how we protect our own,” Macron wrote.

Castro lives in Colombia and went missing in June after he crossed into neighboring Venezuela in what the 41-year-old yoga teacher hoped would be a quick there-and-back trip to extend his Colombian visa, according to Amnesty International.