Somali pirates threaten 'torture' of British sailors

11:24 PM Sat 7 Nov 2009 GMT

'Lynn Rival discovered adrift' .

Mainstream UK media are reporting that Somali pirates are stepping up their pressure by threatening to torture Paul and Rachel Chandler, who were kidnapped from their yacht Lynn Rival on October 23 when they disregarded advice by Seychelles authorities and fellow cruisers not to travel from Seychelles towards Africa.

If true (and many reports have later proved false) this is a new development in the world of Somali pirates, who have generally treated their captives well.

The pirates, who want the return of seven fellow pirates who were captured by a German warship when they attacked French fishing vessel Cape Saint Vincent, were reported as saying that the Chandlers 'would be punished' unless their comrades were freed.

Chandlers in happier times small - .. .

The couple are bing held in a village outside Harardheere, a pirate stronghold on the coastline to the north of Mogadishu.

'We will punish them with the same punishment that our guys are receiving,' Omer, one of the pirates holding the couple was reported as saying. 'If we hear that our guys are tortured, we will also torture them.'

Although Omer claimed that the seven Somali men arrested aboard two skiffs were fishermen, a EuFor spokesman said they had been captured as they fired AK-47 assault rifles at the French ship.

European security sources said yesterday that the seven pirates could be tried in France, Germany or Kenya, and that a hostage swap for the Chandlers would not be contemplated.

The pirates have demanded a $7m (?4.6m) ransom for their release, and appeared to have been angered by a lack of communication from either the Foreign Office or the Chandlers' family. 'I'm waiting for a response from the family, but no one is making any calls to us,' Omer said.

Earlier there were reports that the pirates had clashed over the Chandlers, some pirates wanting to ransom them while others wanted a captive swap. There were even reports of gun battles, but information from Somalia is often conflicting from different news sources.

Background and earlier stories by Sail-World can be found by clicking here

by Blackwattle Studios roundup