Tourists taken hostage in Greece

Greek coast guard officials said five Swiss tourists and their Greek captain were being held hostage by an unknown man who jumped aboard their sailing boat in a southern resort town.

Greek coast guard officials said five Swiss tourists and their Greek captain were being held hostage by an unknown man who jumped aboard their sailing boat in a southern resort town.

The man forced the boat to sail away from the resort of Tolo, near the port town of Nafplion that is located 91 miles south of Athens near the ancient ruins of Mycenae. Three coast guard patrol ships and special forces divers were circling around the Greek-flagged chartered sailing boat "Erato," as it sailed about 1.7 miles off the coast of Nafplion. According to the coast guard, the hijacking occurred at 6 am (4 am BST) as the boat was leaving the port of Nafplion and the unidentified man jumped aboard. Authorities said the man, who they thought was not Greek, had threatened the hostages with an unspecified weapon.

There was no further information available about the identity of the hostages except for their nationality.

The man's demands were not known, but media reports said he had asked to be transported to Casablanca, Morocco. It was not immediately known who owned the sailing boat, the coast guard said.

No other information was immediately available.