Escobar must visit embassy

Bogota (Reuter) - The fugitive drug lord Pablo Escobar will have to visit the US embassy in Bogota and fill out the necessary forms if he wants his two children to be able to enter the United States, an embassy spokesman said yesterday.

Colombian immigration officers on Friday prevented Escobar's children - Juan, 16, and his younger sister Manuela - and their mother from boarding a flight to Miami, saying the children did not have their father's permission to leave the country. The army and police have been hunting Escobar since he escaped from jail last July.

The US embassy on Saturday said it had revoked their visas. The children could apply for new visas but, as they were minors, their parents had to accompany them to the embassy.