Colombia withdraws claim of finding 4 children alive in Amazon rainforest

"I apologize for what happened. The military and indigenous communities will continue their relentless search to bring the information the whole country is waiting for," Colombian President Gustavo Petro posted on Twitter on May 18.

He also deleted a post the day before that said the military had found three children aged 4, 9, 13 and an 11-month-old baby from the Huitoto indigenous community missing after the plane crash. According to President Petro, the information was mistakenly provided by the government 's Family Welfare Institute.

On May 1, a Cessna 206 plane carrying seven people crashed while flying from Araracuara to San Jose del Guaviare, a city in the Colombian Amazon. The bodies of three adults, including the pilot and the children’s mother, were found at the scene.

More than 100 soldiers were deployed along with sniffer dogs to search for the children. Rescuers believe they have been wandering in the woods since the accident, looking for help.

"There is no other priority at this time than searching until we find the children," President Petro added. "Their lives are the most important."

Petro’s earlier announcement that the four children had been found also raised doubts because he did not give details about where and how the children were rescued, nor how they survived in the jungle for 17 days. The military also did not confirm any rescue.

Officials have not released the cause of the crash. The pilot had reported engine problems minutes before the crash. Colombians in the area often travel by private flights due to limited traffic.

Huyen Le (According to AFP, NY Post )