Somali pirates who are demanding US$7m (€4.7m) in ransom for a British sailing couple said today that boats from other countries are plundering Somalia's fish-rich waters.

A BRITISH man kidnapped by Somali pirates while on holiday on a yacht with his wife said in an interview released yesterday that the sea bandits had crept aboard with guns while he was asleep and demanded money.

RELATIVES of a British couple feared snatched by pirates off the east African coast met the Somali Prime Minister yesterday as family members pleaded for an end to their “bad dream”.

The families of a missing British couple feared to have been hijacked by pirates faced an anxious wait for news today.

Rescuers were today searching for a British couple feared to have been hijacked by pirates off the east coast of Africa.