The 34 Egyptian fishermen who escaped after being held for four months by Somali pirates have returned home [AFP]
Published On 24 Aug 200924 Aug 2009
The men arrived at Ataka port, 170km northeast of the Egyptian capital Cairo, to a hero's welcome [AFP]
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Family, friends, officials and other well-wishers were on hand to greet the men on their return [AFP]
The fishermen, whose two vessels were hijacked in the Gulf of Aden, are said to have escaped after they overpowered their captors, killing two of them [AFP]
The pirates had initially demanded a ransom of $5 million to free the captives, later reducing it to $800,000 [AFP]
The fishermen described how the pirates had several times threatened to set fire to the boats while they were on board [AFP]
In their bid to escape, the fishermen took eight of the pirates hostage, bringing them back to Egypt to be tried in court [AFP]
