French Sailor Freed in Nigeria

A French sailor kidnapped from a tanker in Togo when attackers sought to use him as a shield said Tuesday he has been freed in the oil-producing region of Nigeria

Kidnapped French sailor freed in Nigeria

A French sailor kidnapped from a tanker in Togo when attackers sought to use him as a shield said Tuesday he has been freed in the oil-producing region of Nigeria.

Benjamin Elman told reporters he was taken as a shield when naval patrol sought to free the French-flagged vessel on Thursday.

“The navy officers negotiated the release of other crew members but … the pirates held me to ensure that they escape,” he said when briefly presented to journalists in the southern city of Yenagoa.

He said he was taken to a village and fed bread and water, adding that the kidnappers were not violent.

According to military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Onyema Nwachukwu, soldiers……[access full article]