Photo: A. Wehliya - Paul and Rachel Chandler stand with Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed shortly after their release from kidnappers.
After just more than a year spent in Somalia, British citizens Paul and Rachel Chandler are finally going home. After a stop in Mogadishu to meet with the Somali prime minister, the two arrived at Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport en route to their final destination: London.The Chandlers were held near Adado, a town in central Somalia along the Ethiopian border.
Somalia's newly appointed prime minister, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, welcomed the Chandlers.
and said the couple was drained by their experience, but otherwise in good health. "They were in good spirits and they were happy to be alive and to have their freedom," he said.
The Chandlers will receive full medical examinations before returning to England.
"We are feeling very happy to be alive and happy to be here... among decent everyday people," Rachel Chandler said, adding they were "desperate to see family and friends" and thanking the Somalis who worked for their release. She explained they communicated with their captors using a Somali-English phrasebook.
Somali pirates kidnapped the couple on October 23 of last year, while they were sailing in their 38-foot yacht Lynn Revival off the coast of Seychelles.
Although no official figure has been released, the ransom paid to secure the couple's release is estimated to be nearly $1 million. It was gathered by family and friends and by members of the Somali diaspora. The British government has a strict policy of not paying any ransoms. The pirates had initially demanded seven million dollars.
The Chandlers are perhaps the highest profile hostages taken by Somali pirates in recent years. However, there are hundreds of hostages being held by Somali pirates - mainly crews of large tankers crossing the Indian Ocean. Analysts say the recent spike in ransoms paid for hijacked ships has triggered more piracy and increased the amount of time ships are being held by captors.
adapted from VOA and Yahoo News
