July 16 (Bloomberg) -- Colombian President Alvaro Uribe apologized to the Red Cross after a soldier used the agency's emblem when he was pretending to be an aid worker earlier this month during the rescue of 15 hostages held by guerrillas.

Uribe said the soldier attached the insignia to his jacket because he feared for his life. The soldier saw a great number of Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia fighters as he climbed down from the unmarked helicopter, Uribe said.

Government troops on July 2 rescued Ingrid Betancourt, three U.S. Defense Department contractors and 11 military personnel by tricking two commanders of the FARC, as the drug-funded group is known, into believing an international aid mission had been sent by the guerrillas' leadership to retrieve the captives.

The use of the emblem was reported yesterday by CNN. Using the symbol under false pretenses could put legitimate humanitarian missions by the Red Cross at risk by calling into question the affiliation of aid workers.

Use of the insignia could be considered a war crime under the Geneva Conventions and international law, CNN cited Mark Ellis, a director of the International Bar Association, as saying. The FARC hold as many as 700 hostages for ransom and about 25 or so they hope to use as bargaining chips in any negotiations with the government.

``We regret this happened,'' Uribe said in a televised address today.

Yves Heller, a Red Cross spokesman in Colombia, welcomed Uribe's apology and said the most important issue is to have respect for the emblem and to continue working for victims of Colombia's four-decade conflict.

10-Year Captivity

``We need to be able to continue to fight for the release of the other victims,'' Heller said.

Some of the hostages rescued earlier this month had been held for more than 10 years. Guerrillas put three groups of handcuffed captives onto a helicopter that they thought belonged to the aid group and would take them to guerrilla leader Alfonso Cano.

The helicopter was piloted by Colombian troops.

To contact the reporter on this story: Andrea Jaramillo in Bogota at ajaramillo1@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: July 16, 2008 15:49 EDT