Divers from the Greek coastguard stormed a yacht last night and rescued a family of five tourists, including three children, and their skipper who had been hijacked by a gunman in a Greek resort.
Several coastguard vessels could be seen encircling the yacht as Greek state television said the family and skipper were unharmed. The gunman was killed and marine radio referred to one diver being wounded.
Merchant Marine Ministry officials said a coastguard marksman shot the gunman and then divers stormed the small vessel. "The gunman is dead, everyone else is safe," said a ministry spokesman. Officials later said a coastguard officer had been injured but there were no details.
Coastguard officials said the Swiss couple and their children were found locked in the cabins. The yacht was being escorted to the port of Aghios Andreas, on the Peloponnese.
The man had forced the yacht to sail from Nafplion, 91 miles south of Athens, near the ancient ruins of Mycenae, where it had been moored overnight. He had apparently demanded to be taken to Casablanca, Morocco, located across the Mediterranean in north Africa.
Coastguard officers had been trailing the boat, which was sailing aimlessly with its mainsail unfurled, and used a loudhailer to try to talk to the hostage-taker, who was apparently speaking in broken English.
Three coastguard patrol ships and special forces divers had circled around the Greek-flagged yacht Erato as it sailed about 1.7 miles off the coast of Nafplion, near the port town of Astros.
According to the coastguard, the hijacking occurred at 6 a.m. (4 a.m. Irish time) yesterday.
The hijacker, described by officials as unstable, had seized the holiday charter yacht at gunpoint off Nafplion. The unidentified man appeared shortly after the yacht left port and threatened the captain with a gun, demanding to be taken to Morocco. He had threatened to shoot the family and the captain, Mr Aristidis Kalofis, unless he was taken to Casablanca.
The coastguard approached the sailboat three times and tried to convince the gunman to give up but moved away after he threatened to shoot the hostages, officials said.
Authorities said the hijacker had appeared agitated, pacing frantically on the yacht and waving his arms in the air.
The Erato had been chartered on the island of Poros last week by the Swiss family, which had chartered the same boat for a holiday last year. The owner-captain was the yacht's sole crew, coastguard officials said.
Friends of the captain told the coastguard that the family was coming towards the end of their holiday and planning to return home soon.
The hijacker's nationality was not known, but a government official said there were some reports that he was speaking English and said he was of European origin.