Omar Sheikh Ali Osoble, counter-piracy focal point for the Galmudug regional administration told the newspaper: “Some of them were beaten very badly. Sometimes they were forced to call their people at home to say they needed money to be released, and they were close to dying, and they were beaten while they were on the telephone. All of them are so happy to be free.”
Other horrendous stories to come out of sailor’s time in captivity include, having the skin on their hands torn away with pliers, being starved for three days at a time and being threatened with execution.
One unnamed source said: “They have lost a lot of weight, but otherwise seem in reasonable health and in good spirits, which is remarkable considering what they been through.”
The ordeal started in November 2010, when the Iranian cargo ship, The MV Albedo, was taken over by Somali pirates 900 nautical miles east of Mogadishu.
During the exchange one crew member was killed, while the others were taken to a safe house set up by their Somali captors.
The pirates then demanded a ransom of £8 million but the Iranian company that owned the ship was uninsured and could not pay.
Last year, a Pakistani businessman was able to raise $1.2 million dollars to ensure the release of the Pakistani captives, but the others who are believed to be Iranian, Bangladeshi, Indian and Sri Lankan remained, until their escape to today.
