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British captain returns home after Mediterranean mutiny

"I'm jolly glad to be home. I'm looking forward to Christmas and glad it's all over," Capt Ian Wilkinson, 59, told reporters after arriving at Heathrow Airport in London.

Earlier, in Larnaca, Capt Wilkinson, who lives in Chorley, Lancashire, said: "At one stage I thought I'd never see my family again. I thought I was going to be used as a hostage when I got to Cyprus.

"I did fear for my safety in the end - that's why I got off."

Police in Cyprus said they received a request from an insurance company to rescue Capt Wilkinson from the Panamanian-flagged 16,500-tonne cargo ship, the Blue Breeze, because the crew refused to obey him.

He was handed over to Cypriot police in international waters as the 23 crew and original captain of the Blue Breeze sailed on towards Syria.

Capt Wilkinson was working for a bank, which had ordered him to take the ship, which was carrying timber, to Gibraltar.

The Swiss-based Marine Risk Management Group had placed Capt Wilkinson aboard the Blue Breeze at Lagos, Nigeria, following a dispute with the ship's Syrian owners.

A Cyprus Shipping Department official said Capt Wilkinson set sail for Gibraltar but when the ship neared the peninsula, the crew mutinied. The crew set course for Syria at the other end of the Mediterranean.

Capt Wilkinson praised the actions of the Cyprus police. "I'll tell you one thing," he said. "Those Cypriot police in their boat, they are superb seamen. I take my hat off to them.

"I'm jolly glad to be home. I'm looking forward to Christmas and I'm glad it's all over. I've been eating Syrian food for three weeks and now I'm looking forward to a turkey."

Internet Links

The Cyprus Government
Blue Breeze details from Seachart Marine

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