Luis Diaz's father pictured for the first time since release by kidnappers in Colombia

Luis Diaz's father has been pictured for the first time since his release by the left-wing guerrillas who kidnapped him 13 days ago.

On Thursday, Luis Manuel Diaz was handed over to United Nations and Catholic church officials by members of guerilla group, the National Liberation Army (ELN).

He had been abducted on October 28 in Barrancas, his family's hometown.

The Liverpool star's mother was also seized, but was freed within hours.

Local media, via the BBC, have claimed Luis Manuel Diaz was travelling by military helicopter to the city of Valledupar, where he would undergo a medical examination before being returned to his family.

🚨 La primera imagen de la liberación de Luis Manuel Díaz, el padre de Luis Díaz 🇨🇴 pic.twitter.com/Wubm8GfEPJ

— Pipe Sierra (@PSierraR) November 9, 2023

He is allegedly in a good state of health, with no signs of mistreatment.

And a picture posted on X, the social media platform formally known as Twitter, shows Luis Manuel Diaz appearing straight faced but healthy, arm in arm with a Catholic priest.

According to Colombian newspaper El Tiempo, there were tearful scenes of jubilation in the neighbourhood where Diaz's parents lived, with family members taking to their cars to drive through the streets in celebration.

They were said to be dressed in Liverpool team shirts bearing Diaz's name and the number 23.

On the day of the kidnapping the couple had been accosted by gunmen at a petrol station in Barrancas, in the northern province of La Guajira.

The kidnappers later abandoned the Liverpool winger's mother, Cilenis Marulanda, in a car as police closed in, but the player's father was dragged away.

The kidnapping had been carried out by the ELN, Colombia's main remaining active guerrilla group.

It has been fighting the state since 1964 with an estimated 2,500 members.

ELN is most active in the border region with Venezuela, where Diaz's parents live.

Diaz, a Colombia international, scored an emotional late equaliser at Luton on Sunday before revealing a message underneath his shirt which read 'Libertad Para Papa' (Freedom for Dad).

He starts for Liverpool in their Europa League game in Toulouse on Thursday.