August 11, 2022 • 36 mins
In 2008, Australian photojournalist Nigel Brennan and Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout were kidnapped in Somalia by an Islamist insurgent group while reporting on the country's refugee crisis. They endured 460 days in captivity before being released in November 2009.
This episode recounts the harrowing ordeal of a determined photojournalist held hostage in Somalia and his courageous sister's relentless efforts to secure his freedom.
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Speaker 1 (00:16):
You are listening to seven New Spectrum with me Malin
Heglund And this is taken for ransom in Somalia.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
After fifteen months held at gunpoint in Law of Somalia,
Nigel Brennan is on his way.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
Home for four hundred and sixty two days. Our family
has hoped that this day would come.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
In two thousand and eight, Australian Nigel Brennan was living
in Scotland working as a newspaper photographer. With a photojournalist
and background from Brisbane's Griffiths University. He dreamt of telling
meaningful stories.
Speaker 4 (00:56):
Well, I guess you know, I had the stream of
going into conflict zize. Plus I was going through reading
some I guess books like One Credit Era and The
Bank Bank Club, and was inspired by what those guys
had done to really tell stories of people who were
less fortunate, and I guess shine a light into countries
(01:20):
where there was some massive.
Speaker 5 (01:23):
Uphaval going on.
Speaker 4 (01:24):
And Amanda was the one that sort of rang and
asked if I wanted to go, And I guess so
I was at that crossroads in life where I was like,
well if I don't if I don't do it, then
I'm never going to do it so.
Speaker 1 (01:40):
Nigel met Canadian Amanda Lindhaut in two thousand and six
while on assignment in Ethiopia. She was a backpacker and
aspiring conflict journalist who had already freelanced in the Middle East,
living Nigel's stream. When she invited him to join her
in Africa, he sawed as an every moment.
Speaker 4 (02:01):
I really made that conscious decision to go, well, I've
got to experience it, because maybe this is not the
career for me, Maybe this is maybe this is all
in my head, you know.
Speaker 5 (02:13):
I think once we got there and it was like,
I'm not going to lie.
Speaker 4 (02:19):
It was invigorating and terrifying at the same time to
be in such a dangerous place and there is you know,
a lot of adrenaline that goes through your body when
you hear people shooting at you and you're trying to
work and catchure images.
Speaker 5 (02:35):
And I think Somali was a country that at.
Speaker 4 (02:39):
That stage the rest of the world had sort of
forgotten about.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
This Smoke could be seen kilometers across the capital.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
The anguish fell throughout it too.
Speaker 6 (02:51):
When the FBI discovered Somali's becoming radicalized, it'll lure it astray.
Speaker 4 (02:56):
El Shabab, a Somali extremist group with links to our
Kaida cime responsibility via Twitter caught up in the attack, children,
women and foreigner.
Speaker 7 (03:06):
Trying to focus on the vehicle as we can.
Speaker 4 (03:09):
Kids believe that we can take her to the Naga
Honey Mitchella.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
By two thousand and eight, Somalia had been ungoverned for
nearly two decades since President Mohammed Siad Barre was ousted
by militias aiming to establish an Islamic state. Civil war followed,
fueled by state violence and clan conflicts. In two thousand,
the Islamic Courts Union ICU emerged, seeking to govern Somalia
(03:38):
under Shariah law. By two thousand and six, the ICU
had taken control of Mogadishu, ending warlordism with community support.
Those suspicions of links to al Qaeda attracted international concern.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
El Shabab and extremist groupe based in Somalia with links
to al Qaeda.
Speaker 6 (04:01):
They called themselves al Shabab, meaning the boys, but this
training video is the child.
Speaker 3 (04:07):
The White House was quick to condemn the attack, vowing
to continue helping Kenya fight the terror group.
Speaker 6 (04:13):
The groups brought havoc and destruction to its own country,
controlling large parts of Somalia, killing hundreds and forcing thousands
more to flee.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Ethiopian troops entered Somalia, sparking further conflict. In two thousand
and four, Abdullah Yosuf Ahmed and ex warlord became presidents,
but failed to unify Somalia. By two thousand and six,
Ethiopian intervention led to US air strikes, which many believe
(04:44):
radicalized former ICU members, fueling the rise of Al Shabab,
a terrorist group that grew significantly during this period. Somalia
was labeled one of the world's most dangerous countries, often
overlooked by the international community. In two thousand and four,
ex warlord Abdullah Yusuf Ahmed became Somalia's president, but stayed
(05:09):
outside of the country due to instability.
Speaker 7 (05:13):
You did your William and for many men the war
area by your medical Union.
Speaker 8 (05:20):
The European Union, how hardly welcomed the ordinary Parliamentary Search
of Baidua, the first ever version of the parliament.
Speaker 1 (05:32):
In time, the ICU rejected his government, accusing him of
the backing Ethiopian troops. In two thousand and seven, US
air strikes in Somalia supported by Ethiopian forces sparked the
global concerns of escalating violence. Experts link Ethiopia's occupation to
(05:54):
the rise of Al Shabab. As former ICU members joined
the group, which grew significantly between two thousand and six
and two thousand and eight. Somalia was widely seen as
one of the world's most dangerous places, but to Nigel
as the country many had forgotten about. Well, I don't think.
Speaker 9 (06:16):
We knew that it was both of them. And we
were out doing some nightscaping on a friend's place.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
That's Nicki, Nigel's older sister. She, like the rest of
the family, was unaware of her brother's plan to travel
to Somalia.
Speaker 9 (06:32):
And I came back to Angela's house and I'm trying
to think why. Maybe I think maybe Jacinta was there,
maybe our oldest daughter was there. And Angela actually she'd
had a phone call from Mum or Dad. I can't
quite recall which one was. But she asked me if
i'd heard from them, and I said no, I hadn't,
(06:52):
and she said, well, you need to call them because
there's a problem with Nige.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
At Nicki's parents' house confused. They've heard from foreign affairs
that their son might be held hostage in Somalia, yet
Nigel had told his mother he was heading to Kenya
before returning home for a friend's wedding in September.
Speaker 9 (07:13):
There was a lot of time that we were trying
to work out if it was actually accurate or not.
We started bringing around. We rang that a partner foreign
affairs who said that and it took quite a bit
to get this out of them, that no, that was
not the case because it wasn't Nigel Brennan. It was
Michael Brennan and it was unconfirmed and that he was
(07:36):
actually in Somalia, and we were going, well, we know
that he's going to you know, at that point in time,
we'd contacted his girlfriend who was over in Scotland and
she said, yeah, Nigel's in Somalia. And it was when
they said, there's like apparently Manda Lindhout has been napped
(08:00):
as well, and we've gone, yep, we know Amanda. So
it's not Michael Brennan, guys, it's Nigel Brennan. Get your
facts right.
Speaker 1 (08:10):
Nigel and Amanda met at Narobi Airport on August sixteen,
two thousand and eight, to arrange visas and hire a
fixer for their work in Mogadishu, Somalia's capital. A fixer
is a person who is hired to make sure that
they can do their work safely. Nigel hadn't told his
family that he was heading to Somalia. It's estimated that
(08:35):
one million Tomallays have left their homes.
Speaker 10 (08:37):
Some have been displaced for years, but the renewed fighting
has forced about six hundred thousand to flee since February
this year.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
In two thousand and seven, the UNHCR reported severe Klan
conflicts in Mogadishu, with aid access blocked by militia controlled checkpoints.
By the time Nigel and Amanda arrived, over one million
people were the placed in Somalia. In Somalia, Nigel and
Amanda stayed at the Shamo Hotel in Mogadishu. On their
(09:08):
fourth day, Nigel woke up early. He had planned to
join Ugandan troops on patrol before they were scheduled to
visit displaced people's camps. However, he learned it was canceled
after a mortar attack hit the base. The city's constant
fighting made work difficult, with their fixer, Ajo's limiting their
(09:30):
movements for safety. As they prepared to visit displaced people's camps,
Ajos shared unsettling news that left Nigel uneasy.
Speaker 4 (09:41):
We were informed that we would have to lave our
security datail on the edge of Magadishu and then drive
for four or five combas to pick up our next
security data, which was a risk which was really explained
clearly to us, but Commander an asomatic quick decision would
obviously come to try and get a story and let's
(10:03):
go for it, otherwise the day was going to be wasted.
And drove down the road and two or three comme
utes later we thought what was our security detail was
actually an ambush. So you know, it pulled up and
there was a guy standing on the side of the
road in front of his car, and then sort of
noticed very quickly another six or seven guys with fully
mass spaces and the AK forty seven's coming out of
(10:25):
the trees. Doors outdoors of our vehicle were ripped open,
and then we were ripped out of the car and
thrown onto the ground and very quickly then bundled back
into the back seat of our vehicle. So five of
us and then driven for a period of time before
we were taken to a compound and I guess was
the start of our four hundred and sixty days in captivity.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
In Bunderberg at Queensland, Nicky stayed at her parents' house
after news on Nigel's kidnapping. She slept near their bedroom
fearing a dreaded middle of the night call from what
she calls the boogie man for grown ups, and just
past midnight the call came. The caller, with a slight accent,
(11:09):
introduced himself as Ali Umar Aden later referred to as Adam.
Speaker 9 (11:16):
I was in the sleepout in the office area, so
they've got sort of like an upstairs downstairs area and
mum has his selling room which is going to sleep
out in it like a roll at bed there. So
I was in that and the phone rang around about
two or three o'clock in the morning, in the middle
of the night anyway, and I picked it up and
(11:38):
Adan actually announced himself straight away. He said who he
was and asked if I knew who Nigel Brennan was,
to which I responded, my brother, and that he explained.
He was quite clear about explaining that this was a
ransom phone call. And they were asking a ransom price
of three million dollars US. I was pretty I was
(12:06):
pretty freaked out at that point in time. Not so
much by the fact that, I mean, the amount of
money was ridiculous, so it didn't even come into consideration.
I was more freaked out about the fact that there
was no one else here. There was no one present too,
(12:27):
you know, be able to say, yeah, that's that's that's
how they work, this is this is the right thing,
this is this is what goes on with phone calls
like that.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
After Adan hung up, things escalated. In the following days,
Nikki learned negotiation techniques from the Queensland Police and received
Nigel's first proof of life officer from Foreign Affairs and
the AFP moved into the house, setting up laptops and
a phone to monitor calls. Adan's calls continue nude, but
(13:01):
Nikki only heard from Nigel once she was told these
calls were for report building, a key strategy in negotiation.
According to former detective Tom Hart, who now trains police
negotiators in.
Speaker 11 (13:15):
The US, it's all about building a report. So you're
in a negotiation with somebody who's a crisis primarily, and
then the negotiation are different when you're dealing with somebody.
Speaker 5 (13:27):
Like this smalling case.
Speaker 1 (13:29):
Tom was not part of Nigel Alamanda's kidnap for ransom case,
nor does he handle cases like theirs, but he does
have experience in dealing with types of criminals.
Speaker 10 (13:40):
I've been negotiating with a number of people who take
a people hostage, but it's more of a random, unexpected
situation where they've got into a party store. I've did
an arm robbery ended up taking the Clark hostage, and
I've negotiated these situations like that. Other situations are are
(14:01):
people who are distress social and may take a family
member hostage, or if it's a running house of situations
where they will allow the person to.
Speaker 5 (14:12):
Want to leave.
Speaker 1 (14:27):
By September two thousand and eight, Nigel and Amanda had
been held captive for a month. Islamist insurgents were attacking
peacekeeping bases in Mogadishu, with daily battles reported. A video
aired on Al Jazeira showed them in a courtyard claiming
to have converted to Islam. Nigel later called it propaganda,
(14:50):
adding that his calls home were scripted and controlled by
his captors.
Speaker 5 (14:55):
Health after terrority.
Speaker 4 (14:59):
I think someone tells you, you know that the best
thing you can do is to convert, because if you don't,
once we get around them for well, once we get
around them for you will execute you. But if you Muslim,
we can't do that. So it was sort of like
you've made the decision for.
Speaker 1 (15:14):
Us, really, Nigel says, they requested an English Qur'an to
stay on their captor's good side. At first, he read
only a few pages, but later used it to pass
the time. Eventually he used the text to point out
contradictions to his captors.
Speaker 4 (15:32):
I sort of call it my Bible to survival, because
I guess I read it and I tried to find
contradictions within the text of what they were doing. Like
they were saying that they were Muslim, and I was
obviously now a Muslim, and I was saying, well, once
I've become a Muslim, you can't you can't actually stand
(15:53):
in my way. And then we would have this sort
of I guess, for want of a better word, pissing
matches where I say, but here in the crown it
says this, and then they would flick through the pages
and said, but here in the Crown it says in
your right hand you hold the slaves, and they're like, well,
you're a slave because you're a Christian before you became
a Muslim. And then I'd flick through somewhere else and
(16:15):
find another passage and say that here it says this,
and they're like, you're a very good Muslim, like you
understand the crown, and then it flit somewhere else.
Speaker 5 (16:23):
That was frustrating, but.
Speaker 4 (16:26):
I think also instilled in them that I was obviously
trying to understand the religion and look, and I think
in some respects that maybe assured me a little.
Speaker 5 (16:41):
Bit more respect.
Speaker 4 (16:42):
And also, you know, I think banger mail, but the
fact that I was trying to not only understand the
Cran but also learn some of the verses in Arabic.
Speaker 1 (16:51):
By January two thousand and nine, things shifted in Australia.
Amanda's cameraman and two drivers were released, and Nikki and
at a meeting with Foreign Affairs in Canberra. There she
learned about Nigel's well being and you found interest in
the Qur'an. Nikki often felt left out of updates, but
(17:12):
was told by a unique mandate created by the Australian
and Canadian government for the case, there would.
Speaker 9 (17:19):
Be a you know, it was bureau speak. You know,
there will be no ransom paid. However, you know it
may cost two hundred and fifty thousand dollars to get
someone out. Hmm, you know that would be the costs incurred.
That's how it was presented.
Speaker 1 (17:41):
A month later, Nicki's family learned to contact with Adan
had stopped, and the next of kin phone was moved
to Canberra. In March. They attended more meetings, including one
with Australia's Foreign Minister, when.
Speaker 9 (17:56):
We raised I think at that point in time, half
a million dollars we went to I think of Stephen
Smith at the time, and he just said, there's no
way we're facilitating that. We've just gone up. Thanks, that's nice.
There was a whole period of time where you know,
the Australian government took it onto themselves to actually stop
(18:20):
or contact whatsoever. So I was unaware that you know,
there was contact going on, which you know, apparently there
was an aerobi, but none of that was getting back
to us. And from what I understand, you know, they
were trying to put pressure on him by not contacting him,
which you know John said afterwards is complete not of
(18:41):
bloody madness, because all of a sudden they're holding onto
and feeding and looking after an asset that is costing
them quite a lot of money and they don't actually
see any potential profit in it.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
John Cheas, a private negotiator for Ake Insurance, was contacted
by the Brennan family for help. He admired the family
but was frustrated with the government's handling of the case.
His involvement would be key to Nigel and Amanda's release,
(19:18):
and although.
Speaker 6 (19:18):
Al Shabab is not a listed terrorist organization in Australia,
it is here in America.
Speaker 1 (19:27):
By early two thousand and nine, after one hundred and
fifty two days in captivity, Nigel and Amanda's situation worsened
as no ransom was paid. Their captors escalated threats, targeting
Amanda and threatening her life, which led them to plan
and escape.
Speaker 4 (19:46):
From my perspective, it was like, if I'm going to die,
I'm not just going to sit here and take a bullet.
I'm actually going to make this guy's work for its
I guess.
Speaker 5 (19:55):
We looked for weaknesses in the house and found Awakeness
in the.
Speaker 4 (19:59):
Back room at the back of the house, which Amanda
and I sort of shared and spent two and a
half days with a small little male farm on the
end of them now clippers digging out the mordar of
the bricks and made a hole big enough and finally
got out in the middle of the day, ran to
a local mosque and pleaded for help, and people there
(20:20):
were actually incredibly helpful and we're trying to protect us,
and you know, I think the whole ordeal sort of
lasted for about twenty five minutes before we were recaptured,
and that will look that was probably one of the
days where I thought, you know, we were going to
end up dead.
Speaker 5 (20:41):
You know.
Speaker 4 (20:41):
I can remember after we were recaptured and Amanda and
I were put into the back of the car, you know,
we were removed from the mosque and put into the
back of the car, and I can remember Amanda looking
there and saying, fuck, that was intense.
Speaker 1 (20:55):
The escape attempt worsened their treatments. Nigel was shackled with
minimal movements, his Quran taken, and he and Amanda were
separated for eleven months. In Australia, the Brendan family sought
help from negotiator John Chase. Despite warnings from Foreign Affairs
(21:15):
who called such negotiators cowboys and advised against it.
Speaker 9 (21:20):
So John rang us twice a day, so once individually
and once was a great conversation with John and Amanda's
mother and myself, and we would discuss what our conversations
and the lay of the land. Our conversations would be
with Adam or the following evening or whenever they were
(21:43):
meant to happen. So effectively, it was all about coaching
us as to how to respond. Like our primary directive
was always proof of life. The problem we had at
that point in time is a dan. We'd worked out
that Adam was kind of a third party member and
they had been sold on. At that point in time,
it was so long down the POUDMA track.
Speaker 1 (22:04):
The crisis management team, including Nikki, her sister in law,
Amanda's parents, and her best friend, met with John Chase.
He revealed that the Department of Foreign Affairs had shared
no information when he took over the case. Raising ransom
money was difficult, but soon unexpected help came, proving vital
(22:26):
for Nigel and Amanda's release.
Speaker 2 (22:39):
The photo journalist is Canadian colleague were kidnapped for a
million dollar ransom their families couldn't pay.
Speaker 7 (22:46):
I had my senate officers in the seller Maker place
in Hobart, and I got a call from a journalist
for the Economist magazine. He worked in Africa, but he
was in Hobart writing a book and he gove call
and asked to have a cup of coffee. So I did,
and he said, what's happening with this Australian called Nigel
(23:08):
Brennan has been kidnapped and has been held by a
criminal gang in Mogadishu. And I said, I have no idea.
I'd never heard of it. I'll find out.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
Bob Brown, former leader of the Australian Greens, confirmed the
kidnapping with the Foreign Affairs and noted the situation looked grim.
He said his decision to help the Brennan family came
after a conversation with Nigel's mother.
Speaker 7 (23:35):
No more I thought about it, the more alarmed I
became about the fact that almost no one in Australia
besides the Brennans knew what was happening. There was no
media coverage of it, certainly, and there was no parliamentary
or there appeared to be no bureaucratic action impact worse
(23:56):
than that, the department had taken over the communications with
the people who were holding Nigel an Amanda in Moggod
Issue and had decided not to communicate with them. I
thought if they didn't communicate with them, that might the
criminals might give up and just release them. But of
(24:19):
course for the family this was harrowing stuff, and they
told the family not to get in contact, and they
were really leaving the family out on a limb with
a no action plan. And it was very alarming because
it didn't take too much common sense to know that
these armed thugs in Moggot Issue would very easily put
(24:42):
a bullet into these people, and they weren't going to
go out of their way to be nice about it,
or to in some way or other release Nigel and
Amanda for nothing.
Speaker 1 (24:55):
Bob and his partner Paul donated one hundred thousand Australian
dollars after learning about John Chase and the shortfall in funds.
Bob hoped their contribution would inspire others, but when it didn't,
he began seeking additional support.
Speaker 7 (25:13):
They ended up running sausage sizzles to raise money.
Speaker 10 (25:16):
They virtually sold everything they could sell.
Speaker 7 (25:18):
Iran Dick Smith hetics been very generous in the past,
and I told him about the plight of Nigel and
Amanda and that the kidnappers were asking one and a
half million, and we had with the Brennans a couple
hundred thousand, but that was all. Now he redue diligence,
(25:40):
including contacting mister Chase or at least sussing out the
bona fides of the littleman from Britain and found him
to be genuine and to have a proven record and
the catalong story short, they can put up amount of
(26:00):
money for most of us, and mister Chase went to
work and made contact with the kidnapper.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
This businessman, Dick Smith, stepped in branding the federal government's
eleven month attempt of failure.
Speaker 7 (26:15):
In fact, with hindsight, they really didn't know what they
were doing.
Speaker 2 (26:18):
They hired private security experts, something Smith says the government
should have recommended from day one.
Speaker 1 (26:24):
Alongside Nikki and the crisis management team, John Chase was
also assisted by a Somali interpreter based in the UK.
Nikki says the interpreter made communication with a done easier
and helped prevent Adan from trying to raise the ransom amounts.
Speaker 9 (26:43):
He was also in a situation where he couldn't negotiate,
and that's what he would tell them, say, I cannot
I can't negotiate. This is the price, this is the
amount of money they have the end, and I think
are done, you know, like tried to worm you know,
I don't know two and a half thousand dollars out
of him or something. And he's quickly sent a text
(27:06):
through to John going I.
Speaker 5 (27:08):
Think we should do this.
Speaker 9 (27:10):
I'm going to say yep, to which he did, and
so that at that point in time the deal was made.
And that's when John said, right, get on a plane.
I'm going to send I'm getting you over here. Amanda's
mom over my folks came over as well too, and
thesas boys over here, and we're going to see how
(27:33):
we go moving the money directly from here to there.
Speaker 1 (27:37):
In Somalia, it was the country's second rainy season and
Nigel and Amanda's fifteenth month in captivity. Nigel said he
hadn't heard from his family in months.
Speaker 5 (27:48):
I think maybe a month before released.
Speaker 4 (27:52):
I got to speak to my sister and she'd sort
of said, you know, if everything goes to planned, you
should be back with us in the next twenty four hours,
and that sort of passed, and then our captors had
sort of said, your family have a wasting well, they're
wasting time or something like that.
Speaker 5 (28:13):
And we've been.
Speaker 4 (28:13):
Speaking to another group, al Shabab, who I knew was that,
you know, class as a terrorist organization, and they had
said that they'd offered kay two million dollars from Amander
and myself and they had a bigger network where they
could hold us for a longer period of time.
Speaker 5 (28:29):
And so the day we're.
Speaker 4 (28:30):
Actually released, I thought we were about to be handed
on to them.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Al Shabab was added to the US State Department's terrorists
list five months before Nigel and Amanda were captured. In Australia,
the group was listed in two thousand and nine. Under
Australian law, paying ransom to a group known as a
terrorist organization is illegal if done knowingly or recklessly.
Speaker 9 (28:56):
So it was all just like you know, the end
of a law hard flight and just like bloody hell.
So yeah, and then then we got to yeah, well
picked up and we went out to the the hotel
that was staying and then and then the diplomacy games began.
Speaker 1 (29:19):
Ricky arrived in their Robi on November third, two thousand
and nine, with her parents, meeting Australian government's REPS John Chase,
Amanda's parents and a friend. They finalized a ransom deal
with a don five hundred and forty eight one thousand,
plus an extra one hundred and thirty five thousand, likely
for a Dan himself, just two days before their departure. However,
(29:43):
upon arrival, communication with a Dance stopped and they were
introduced to new contact replacing him.
Speaker 9 (29:50):
We were booked to go home on the second time.
When the money went in the second time, I was
just like, yep, right, that's it, and I'm you know,
at that point in time, we were no longer speaking
to dam They've been sold on once again, and we're
talking to the king King. And fortunately at that point
(30:10):
in time, we were having conversations with our Somali and
interpreter at the same time as well too, so he
was in on the phone calls plus Amanda's mum and
I and John at that point in time, but he
was just listening to the kidnappers from Nairobi.
Speaker 2 (30:30):
After fifteen months held at gunpoint in lawless Somalia, Nigel
Brennan is on his way home.
Speaker 3 (30:36):
For four hundred and sixty two days, our family has
hoped that this day would come.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
In a brief, sometimes difficult media conference, his family revealed
their hell since last August.
Speaker 3 (30:49):
This has been an unbelievably harrowing and wearing ordeal and
nothing could have prepared us as a family for what
we have gone through since Nigel's capture.
Speaker 1 (31:00):
Twenty fifth, a captor entered Nigel's room, demanding he changed
into new clothes and leave outside. He was ordered into
a vehicle and there was Amanda. He hadn't seen her
since their escape attempt.
Speaker 5 (31:15):
But we were like, what's going on?
Speaker 4 (31:17):
And it was sort of late afternoon on dusk, and
driven around for what felt like about two hours until.
Speaker 5 (31:24):
It was dark, and then we pulled up.
Speaker 4 (31:26):
You know, we'd sort of created this convoy of three vehicles,
and we pulled up in the bush somewhere and then
we're taken out of our car and put into like
a low station wagon. Then two guys asked us our names,
and we were there for about maybe ten to fifteen minutes,
and then we drove off and left our captors and
(31:47):
drove down the road and about five k's down the road,
you know, massive Tonado with a fifty.
Speaker 5 (31:56):
MILLI made a gun.
Speaker 4 (31:57):
Hanging off the back of it sort of blocked our
path and all of these guys in army fatigues or
not army fatigues, but with AK forty seven's came out
and I was like, oh my god, this this doesn't
look good. And it wasn't until we were taken out
of that there and put into another four wheel drive
and a guy who was in the car he was
(32:22):
trying to calm this down, and who was like, why
are you being hysterical because both of us were, and
he said, you've been released, and I think I sort
of said, well, if we've been released, where are the
white people? Because I couldn't see any white people there.
And he finally took a phone out of his pocket
and gave it to Amanda, and it was Amanda's man
(32:45):
on the phone.
Speaker 9 (32:46):
There was this whole fear in trepidation because people knew
that they had been paid for and we're thinking cheeses.
Speaker 3 (32:57):
Christ.
Speaker 9 (32:57):
Imagine if someone just breaks it and takes them again.
Speaker 2 (33:04):
Thirty seven year old Brennan and Canadian journalist Amanda lid
Out were kidnapped while covering the refugee crisis in Somalia. Seven.
You spoke to him in his hotel today.
Speaker 3 (33:14):
He answered the phone very confidently, said hello.
Speaker 4 (33:17):
I said how are you?
Speaker 1 (33:18):
And he said, I'm okay, I'm great.
Speaker 2 (33:20):
But for months they've been locked up, stripped, naked, starved.
Speaker 4 (33:24):
There are times that I was beaten and I was tortured.
Speaker 3 (33:30):
Extremely extremely difficult situation.
Speaker 4 (33:33):
Yeah, it's hard to put into like I think I
was again because I had sort of compartmentalized my motion.
Speaker 5 (33:40):
I think I just grabbed mum and neck and we
sort of walked.
Speaker 4 (33:44):
We walked into the hospital where I spent the next
five days sort of obviously undergoing a lot of medical
and dental work and those sorts of things before going
into like another five days of fairly intense psychological work
and working with ISTRAI and Federal Polastis sort of daybreak
as much as I could before I came home.
Speaker 7 (34:11):
I'll never forget being called at dawn one morning, Vibe
Pater style from my office in Cambrida to say Nigel's released.
And it was a fantastic feeling that they actually, the
two of them were actually on their way back to Nairobi,
where Nigel's parents were waiting to greet him.
Speaker 1 (34:35):
On February fourth, twenty ten, Bob Brown called for a
Center inquiry into the federal government's approach to Australians kidnapped overseas.
He said the decision came in response to the government's
handling on Nigel's case and others like it.
Speaker 7 (34:52):
So we recommend this Senate inquiry recommended that in future
cases where kidnapped they're family or friends who want to
help them be told directly and first up by defat
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade that there are intermediaries
(35:14):
who can help them get to negotiate an outcome which
may lead to the release of their loved ones. That
that was the best avenue to go. Now whether or
not that's happened since I don't know, I don't think
the government and the governments of the day quite realized
(35:36):
the circumstances that a kidnap person's in. In fact, they
are appalling circumstances. It's difficult all around, but that Senate
Inquiry made that recommendation. It's fundamental and will be fundamental
because more Australians will be kidnapped and dangerous places around
(35:58):
the world and when they are. If the government's not
going to take action, it should at least advise people
who want to take action on how best to do it,
and not sit around with it on the hands for
months and refuse to answer phone calls. That's a deadly
hopeless course of action and it should never be repeated.
(36:19):
It put Nigel and Amanda through months of hell they
shouldn't have had to endure, and that should not happen
again in the future when the inevitable kidnapping of another
Australian occurs.
Speaker 1 (36:38):
You have listened to seven New Spectrum Taken for Ransom
in Somalia. This episode was produced and voiced by me
Marlon Haglunds.
You are listening to seven New Spectrum with me Malin
Heglund And this is taken for ransom in Somalia.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
After fifteen months held at gunpoint in Law of Somalia,
Nigel Brennan is on his way.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
Home for four hundred and sixty two days. Our family
has hoped that this day would come.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
In two thousand and eight, Australian Nigel Brennan was living
in Scotland working as a newspaper photographer. With a photojournalist
and background from Brisbane's Griffiths University. He dreamt of telling
meaningful stories.
Speaker 4 (00:56):
Well, I guess you know, I had the stream of
going into conflict zize. Plus I was going through reading
some I guess books like One Credit Era and The
Bank Bank Club, and was inspired by what those guys
had done to really tell stories of people who were
less fortunate, and I guess shine a light into countries
(01:20):
where there was some massive.
Speaker 5 (01:23):
Uphaval going on.
Speaker 4 (01:24):
And Amanda was the one that sort of rang and
asked if I wanted to go, And I guess so
I was at that crossroads in life where I was like,
well if I don't if I don't do it, then
I'm never going to do it so.
Speaker 1 (01:40):
Nigel met Canadian Amanda Lindhaut in two thousand and six
while on assignment in Ethiopia. She was a backpacker and
aspiring conflict journalist who had already freelanced in the Middle East,
living Nigel's stream. When she invited him to join her
in Africa, he sawed as an every moment.
Speaker 4 (02:01):
I really made that conscious decision to go, well, I've
got to experience it, because maybe this is not the
career for me, Maybe this is maybe this is all
in my head, you know.
Speaker 5 (02:13):
I think once we got there and it was like,
I'm not going to lie.
Speaker 4 (02:19):
It was invigorating and terrifying at the same time to
be in such a dangerous place and there is you know,
a lot of adrenaline that goes through your body when
you hear people shooting at you and you're trying to
work and catchure images.
Speaker 5 (02:35):
And I think Somali was a country that at.
Speaker 4 (02:39):
That stage the rest of the world had sort of
forgotten about.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
This Smoke could be seen kilometers across the capital.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
The anguish fell throughout it too.
Speaker 6 (02:51):
When the FBI discovered Somali's becoming radicalized, it'll lure it astray.
Speaker 4 (02:56):
El Shabab, a Somali extremist group with links to our
Kaida cime responsibility via Twitter caught up in the attack, children,
women and foreigner.
Speaker 7 (03:06):
Trying to focus on the vehicle as we can.
Speaker 4 (03:09):
Kids believe that we can take her to the Naga
Honey Mitchella.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
By two thousand and eight, Somalia had been ungoverned for
nearly two decades since President Mohammed Siad Barre was ousted
by militias aiming to establish an Islamic state. Civil war followed,
fueled by state violence and clan conflicts. In two thousand,
the Islamic Courts Union ICU emerged, seeking to govern Somalia
(03:38):
under Shariah law. By two thousand and six, the ICU
had taken control of Mogadishu, ending warlordism with community support.
Those suspicions of links to al Qaeda attracted international concern.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
El Shabab and extremist groupe based in Somalia with links
to al Qaeda.
Speaker 6 (04:01):
They called themselves al Shabab, meaning the boys, but this
training video is the child.
Speaker 3 (04:07):
The White House was quick to condemn the attack, vowing
to continue helping Kenya fight the terror group.
Speaker 6 (04:13):
The groups brought havoc and destruction to its own country,
controlling large parts of Somalia, killing hundreds and forcing thousands
more to flee.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Ethiopian troops entered Somalia, sparking further conflict. In two thousand
and four, Abdullah Yosuf Ahmed and ex warlord became presidents,
but failed to unify Somalia. By two thousand and six,
Ethiopian intervention led to US air strikes, which many believe
(04:44):
radicalized former ICU members, fueling the rise of Al Shabab,
a terrorist group that grew significantly during this period. Somalia
was labeled one of the world's most dangerous countries, often
overlooked by the international community. In two thousand and four,
ex warlord Abdullah Yusuf Ahmed became Somalia's president, but stayed
(05:09):
outside of the country due to instability.
Speaker 7 (05:13):
You did your William and for many men the war
area by your medical Union.
Speaker 8 (05:20):
The European Union, how hardly welcomed the ordinary Parliamentary Search
of Baidua, the first ever version of the parliament.
Speaker 1 (05:32):
In time, the ICU rejected his government, accusing him of
the backing Ethiopian troops. In two thousand and seven, US
air strikes in Somalia supported by Ethiopian forces sparked the
global concerns of escalating violence. Experts link Ethiopia's occupation to
(05:54):
the rise of Al Shabab. As former ICU members joined
the group, which grew significantly between two thousand and six
and two thousand and eight. Somalia was widely seen as
one of the world's most dangerous places, but to Nigel
as the country many had forgotten about. Well, I don't think.
Speaker 9 (06:16):
We knew that it was both of them. And we
were out doing some nightscaping on a friend's place.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
That's Nicki, Nigel's older sister. She, like the rest of
the family, was unaware of her brother's plan to travel
to Somalia.
Speaker 9 (06:32):
And I came back to Angela's house and I'm trying
to think why. Maybe I think maybe Jacinta was there,
maybe our oldest daughter was there. And Angela actually she'd
had a phone call from Mum or Dad. I can't
quite recall which one was. But she asked me if
i'd heard from them, and I said no, I hadn't,
(06:52):
and she said, well, you need to call them because
there's a problem with Nige.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
At Nicki's parents' house confused. They've heard from foreign affairs
that their son might be held hostage in Somalia, yet
Nigel had told his mother he was heading to Kenya
before returning home for a friend's wedding in September.
Speaker 9 (07:13):
There was a lot of time that we were trying
to work out if it was actually accurate or not.
We started bringing around. We rang that a partner foreign
affairs who said that and it took quite a bit
to get this out of them, that no, that was
not the case because it wasn't Nigel Brennan. It was
Michael Brennan and it was unconfirmed and that he was
(07:36):
actually in Somalia, and we were going, well, we know
that he's going to you know, at that point in time,
we'd contacted his girlfriend who was over in Scotland and
she said, yeah, Nigel's in Somalia. And it was when
they said, there's like apparently Manda Lindhout has been napped
(08:00):
as well, and we've gone, yep, we know Amanda. So
it's not Michael Brennan, guys, it's Nigel Brennan. Get your
facts right.
Speaker 1 (08:10):
Nigel and Amanda met at Narobi Airport on August sixteen,
two thousand and eight, to arrange visas and hire a
fixer for their work in Mogadishu, Somalia's capital. A fixer
is a person who is hired to make sure that
they can do their work safely. Nigel hadn't told his
family that he was heading to Somalia. It's estimated that
(08:35):
one million Tomallays have left their homes.
Speaker 10 (08:37):
Some have been displaced for years, but the renewed fighting
has forced about six hundred thousand to flee since February
this year.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
In two thousand and seven, the UNHCR reported severe Klan
conflicts in Mogadishu, with aid access blocked by militia controlled checkpoints.
By the time Nigel and Amanda arrived, over one million
people were the placed in Somalia. In Somalia, Nigel and
Amanda stayed at the Shamo Hotel in Mogadishu. On their
(09:08):
fourth day, Nigel woke up early. He had planned to
join Ugandan troops on patrol before they were scheduled to
visit displaced people's camps. However, he learned it was canceled
after a mortar attack hit the base. The city's constant
fighting made work difficult, with their fixer, Ajo's limiting their
(09:30):
movements for safety. As they prepared to visit displaced people's camps,
Ajos shared unsettling news that left Nigel uneasy.
Speaker 4 (09:41):
We were informed that we would have to lave our
security datail on the edge of Magadishu and then drive
for four or five combas to pick up our next
security data, which was a risk which was really explained
clearly to us, but Commander an asomatic quick decision would
obviously come to try and get a story and let's
(10:03):
go for it, otherwise the day was going to be wasted.
And drove down the road and two or three comme
utes later we thought what was our security detail was
actually an ambush. So you know, it pulled up and
there was a guy standing on the side of the
road in front of his car, and then sort of
noticed very quickly another six or seven guys with fully
mass spaces and the AK forty seven's coming out of
(10:25):
the trees. Doors outdoors of our vehicle were ripped open,
and then we were ripped out of the car and
thrown onto the ground and very quickly then bundled back
into the back seat of our vehicle. So five of
us and then driven for a period of time before
we were taken to a compound and I guess was
the start of our four hundred and sixty days in captivity.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
In Bunderberg at Queensland, Nicky stayed at her parents' house
after news on Nigel's kidnapping. She slept near their bedroom
fearing a dreaded middle of the night call from what
she calls the boogie man for grown ups, and just
past midnight the call came. The caller, with a slight accent,
(11:09):
introduced himself as Ali Umar Aden later referred to as Adam.
Speaker 9 (11:16):
I was in the sleepout in the office area, so
they've got sort of like an upstairs downstairs area and
mum has his selling room which is going to sleep
out in it like a roll at bed there. So
I was in that and the phone rang around about
two or three o'clock in the morning, in the middle
of the night anyway, and I picked it up and
(11:38):
Adan actually announced himself straight away. He said who he
was and asked if I knew who Nigel Brennan was,
to which I responded, my brother, and that he explained.
He was quite clear about explaining that this was a
ransom phone call. And they were asking a ransom price
of three million dollars US. I was pretty I was
(12:06):
pretty freaked out at that point in time. Not so
much by the fact that, I mean, the amount of
money was ridiculous, so it didn't even come into consideration.
I was more freaked out about the fact that there
was no one else here. There was no one present too,
(12:27):
you know, be able to say, yeah, that's that's that's
how they work, this is this is the right thing,
this is this is what goes on with phone calls
like that.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
After Adan hung up, things escalated. In the following days,
Nikki learned negotiation techniques from the Queensland Police and received
Nigel's first proof of life officer from Foreign Affairs and
the AFP moved into the house, setting up laptops and
a phone to monitor calls. Adan's calls continue nude, but
(13:01):
Nikki only heard from Nigel once she was told these
calls were for report building, a key strategy in negotiation.
According to former detective Tom Hart, who now trains police
negotiators in.
Speaker 11 (13:15):
The US, it's all about building a report. So you're
in a negotiation with somebody who's a crisis primarily, and
then the negotiation are different when you're dealing with somebody.
Speaker 5 (13:27):
Like this smalling case.
Speaker 1 (13:29):
Tom was not part of Nigel Alamanda's kidnap for ransom case,
nor does he handle cases like theirs, but he does
have experience in dealing with types of criminals.
Speaker 10 (13:40):
I've been negotiating with a number of people who take
a people hostage, but it's more of a random, unexpected
situation where they've got into a party store. I've did
an arm robbery ended up taking the Clark hostage, and
I've negotiated these situations like that. Other situations are are
(14:01):
people who are distress social and may take a family
member hostage, or if it's a running house of situations
where they will allow the person to.
Speaker 5 (14:12):
Want to leave.
Speaker 1 (14:27):
By September two thousand and eight, Nigel and Amanda had
been held captive for a month. Islamist insurgents were attacking
peacekeeping bases in Mogadishu, with daily battles reported. A video
aired on Al Jazeira showed them in a courtyard claiming
to have converted to Islam. Nigel later called it propaganda,
(14:50):
adding that his calls home were scripted and controlled by
his captors.
Speaker 5 (14:55):
Health after terrority.
Speaker 4 (14:59):
I think someone tells you, you know that the best
thing you can do is to convert, because if you don't,
once we get around them for well, once we get
around them for you will execute you. But if you Muslim,
we can't do that. So it was sort of like
you've made the decision for.
Speaker 1 (15:14):
Us, really, Nigel says, they requested an English Qur'an to
stay on their captor's good side. At first, he read
only a few pages, but later used it to pass
the time. Eventually he used the text to point out
contradictions to his captors.
Speaker 4 (15:32):
I sort of call it my Bible to survival, because
I guess I read it and I tried to find
contradictions within the text of what they were doing. Like
they were saying that they were Muslim, and I was
obviously now a Muslim, and I was saying, well, once
I've become a Muslim, you can't you can't actually stand
(15:53):
in my way. And then we would have this sort
of I guess, for want of a better word, pissing
matches where I say, but here in the crown it
says this, and then they would flick through the pages
and said, but here in the Crown it says in
your right hand you hold the slaves, and they're like, well,
you're a slave because you're a Christian before you became
a Muslim. And then I'd flick through somewhere else and
(16:15):
find another passage and say that here it says this,
and they're like, you're a very good Muslim, like you
understand the crown, and then it flit somewhere else.
Speaker 5 (16:23):
That was frustrating, but.
Speaker 4 (16:26):
I think also instilled in them that I was obviously
trying to understand the religion and look, and I think
in some respects that maybe assured me a little.
Speaker 5 (16:41):
Bit more respect.
Speaker 4 (16:42):
And also, you know, I think banger mail, but the
fact that I was trying to not only understand the
Cran but also learn some of the verses in Arabic.
Speaker 1 (16:51):
By January two thousand and nine, things shifted in Australia.
Amanda's cameraman and two drivers were released, and Nikki and
at a meeting with Foreign Affairs in Canberra. There she
learned about Nigel's well being and you found interest in
the Qur'an. Nikki often felt left out of updates, but
(17:12):
was told by a unique mandate created by the Australian
and Canadian government for the case, there would.
Speaker 9 (17:19):
Be a you know, it was bureau speak. You know,
there will be no ransom paid. However, you know it
may cost two hundred and fifty thousand dollars to get
someone out. Hmm, you know that would be the costs incurred.
That's how it was presented.
Speaker 1 (17:41):
A month later, Nicki's family learned to contact with Adan
had stopped, and the next of kin phone was moved
to Canberra. In March. They attended more meetings, including one
with Australia's Foreign Minister, when.
Speaker 9 (17:56):
We raised I think at that point in time, half
a million dollars we went to I think of Stephen
Smith at the time, and he just said, there's no
way we're facilitating that. We've just gone up. Thanks, that's nice.
There was a whole period of time where you know,
the Australian government took it onto themselves to actually stop
(18:20):
or contact whatsoever. So I was unaware that you know,
there was contact going on, which you know, apparently there
was an aerobi, but none of that was getting back
to us. And from what I understand, you know, they
were trying to put pressure on him by not contacting him,
which you know John said afterwards is complete not of
(18:41):
bloody madness, because all of a sudden they're holding onto
and feeding and looking after an asset that is costing
them quite a lot of money and they don't actually
see any potential profit in it.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
John Cheas, a private negotiator for Ake Insurance, was contacted
by the Brennan family for help. He admired the family
but was frustrated with the government's handling of the case.
His involvement would be key to Nigel and Amanda's release,
(19:18):
and although.
Speaker 6 (19:18):
Al Shabab is not a listed terrorist organization in Australia,
it is here in America.
Speaker 1 (19:27):
By early two thousand and nine, after one hundred and
fifty two days in captivity, Nigel and Amanda's situation worsened
as no ransom was paid. Their captors escalated threats, targeting
Amanda and threatening her life, which led them to plan
and escape.
Speaker 4 (19:46):
From my perspective, it was like, if I'm going to die,
I'm not just going to sit here and take a bullet.
I'm actually going to make this guy's work for its
I guess.
Speaker 5 (19:55):
We looked for weaknesses in the house and found Awakeness
in the.
Speaker 4 (19:59):
Back room at the back of the house, which Amanda
and I sort of shared and spent two and a
half days with a small little male farm on the
end of them now clippers digging out the mordar of
the bricks and made a hole big enough and finally
got out in the middle of the day, ran to
a local mosque and pleaded for help, and people there
(20:20):
were actually incredibly helpful and we're trying to protect us,
and you know, I think the whole ordeal sort of
lasted for about twenty five minutes before we were recaptured,
and that will look that was probably one of the
days where I thought, you know, we were going to
end up dead.
Speaker 5 (20:41):
You know.
Speaker 4 (20:41):
I can remember after we were recaptured and Amanda and
I were put into the back of the car, you know,
we were removed from the mosque and put into the
back of the car, and I can remember Amanda looking
there and saying, fuck, that was intense.
Speaker 1 (20:55):
The escape attempt worsened their treatments. Nigel was shackled with
minimal movements, his Quran taken, and he and Amanda were
separated for eleven months. In Australia, the Brendan family sought
help from negotiator John Chase. Despite warnings from Foreign Affairs
(21:15):
who called such negotiators cowboys and advised against it.
Speaker 9 (21:20):
So John rang us twice a day, so once individually
and once was a great conversation with John and Amanda's
mother and myself, and we would discuss what our conversations
and the lay of the land. Our conversations would be
with Adam or the following evening or whenever they were
(21:43):
meant to happen. So effectively, it was all about coaching
us as to how to respond. Like our primary directive
was always proof of life. The problem we had at
that point in time is a dan. We'd worked out
that Adam was kind of a third party member and
they had been sold on. At that point in time,
it was so long down the POUDMA track.
Speaker 1 (22:04):
The crisis management team, including Nikki, her sister in law,
Amanda's parents, and her best friend, met with John Chase.
He revealed that the Department of Foreign Affairs had shared
no information when he took over the case. Raising ransom
money was difficult, but soon unexpected help came, proving vital
(22:26):
for Nigel and Amanda's release.
Speaker 2 (22:39):
The photo journalist is Canadian colleague were kidnapped for a
million dollar ransom their families couldn't pay.
Speaker 7 (22:46):
I had my senate officers in the seller Maker place
in Hobart, and I got a call from a journalist
for the Economist magazine. He worked in Africa, but he
was in Hobart writing a book and he gove call
and asked to have a cup of coffee. So I did,
and he said, what's happening with this Australian called Nigel
(23:08):
Brennan has been kidnapped and has been held by a
criminal gang in Mogadishu. And I said, I have no idea.
I'd never heard of it. I'll find out.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
Bob Brown, former leader of the Australian Greens, confirmed the
kidnapping with the Foreign Affairs and noted the situation looked grim.
He said his decision to help the Brennan family came
after a conversation with Nigel's mother.
Speaker 7 (23:35):
No more I thought about it, the more alarmed I
became about the fact that almost no one in Australia
besides the Brennans knew what was happening. There was no
media coverage of it, certainly, and there was no parliamentary
or there appeared to be no bureaucratic action impact worse
(23:56):
than that, the department had taken over the communications with
the people who were holding Nigel an Amanda in Moggod
Issue and had decided not to communicate with them. I
thought if they didn't communicate with them, that might the
criminals might give up and just release them. But of
(24:19):
course for the family this was harrowing stuff, and they
told the family not to get in contact, and they
were really leaving the family out on a limb with
a no action plan. And it was very alarming because
it didn't take too much common sense to know that
these armed thugs in Moggot Issue would very easily put
(24:42):
a bullet into these people, and they weren't going to
go out of their way to be nice about it,
or to in some way or other release Nigel and
Amanda for nothing.
Speaker 1 (24:55):
Bob and his partner Paul donated one hundred thousand Australian
dollars after learning about John Chase and the shortfall in funds.
Bob hoped their contribution would inspire others, but when it didn't,
he began seeking additional support.
Speaker 7 (25:13):
They ended up running sausage sizzles to raise money.
Speaker 10 (25:16):
They virtually sold everything they could sell.
Speaker 7 (25:18):
Iran Dick Smith hetics been very generous in the past,
and I told him about the plight of Nigel and
Amanda and that the kidnappers were asking one and a
half million, and we had with the Brennans a couple
hundred thousand, but that was all. Now he redue diligence,
(25:40):
including contacting mister Chase or at least sussing out the
bona fides of the littleman from Britain and found him
to be genuine and to have a proven record and
the catalong story short, they can put up amount of
(26:00):
money for most of us, and mister Chase went to
work and made contact with the kidnapper.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
This businessman, Dick Smith, stepped in branding the federal government's
eleven month attempt of failure.
Speaker 7 (26:15):
In fact, with hindsight, they really didn't know what they
were doing.
Speaker 2 (26:18):
They hired private security experts, something Smith says the government
should have recommended from day one.
Speaker 1 (26:24):
Alongside Nikki and the crisis management team, John Chase was
also assisted by a Somali interpreter based in the UK.
Nikki says the interpreter made communication with a done easier
and helped prevent Adan from trying to raise the ransom amounts.
Speaker 9 (26:43):
He was also in a situation where he couldn't negotiate,
and that's what he would tell them, say, I cannot
I can't negotiate. This is the price, this is the
amount of money they have the end, and I think
are done, you know, like tried to worm you know,
I don't know two and a half thousand dollars out
of him or something. And he's quickly sent a text
(27:06):
through to John going I.
Speaker 5 (27:08):
Think we should do this.
Speaker 9 (27:10):
I'm going to say yep, to which he did, and
so that at that point in time the deal was made.
And that's when John said, right, get on a plane.
I'm going to send I'm getting you over here. Amanda's
mom over my folks came over as well too, and
thesas boys over here, and we're going to see how
(27:33):
we go moving the money directly from here to there.
Speaker 1 (27:37):
In Somalia, it was the country's second rainy season and
Nigel and Amanda's fifteenth month in captivity. Nigel said he
hadn't heard from his family in months.
Speaker 5 (27:48):
I think maybe a month before released.
Speaker 4 (27:52):
I got to speak to my sister and she'd sort
of said, you know, if everything goes to planned, you
should be back with us in the next twenty four hours,
and that sort of passed, and then our captors had
sort of said, your family have a wasting well, they're
wasting time or something like that.
Speaker 5 (28:13):
And we've been.
Speaker 4 (28:13):
Speaking to another group, al Shabab, who I knew was that,
you know, class as a terrorist organization, and they had
said that they'd offered kay two million dollars from Amander
and myself and they had a bigger network where they
could hold us for a longer period of time.
Speaker 5 (28:29):
And so the day we're.
Speaker 4 (28:30):
Actually released, I thought we were about to be handed
on to them.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Al Shabab was added to the US State Department's terrorists
list five months before Nigel and Amanda were captured. In Australia,
the group was listed in two thousand and nine. Under
Australian law, paying ransom to a group known as a
terrorist organization is illegal if done knowingly or recklessly.
Speaker 9 (28:56):
So it was all just like you know, the end
of a law hard flight and just like bloody hell.
So yeah, and then then we got to yeah, well
picked up and we went out to the the hotel
that was staying and then and then the diplomacy games began.
Speaker 1 (29:19):
Ricky arrived in their Robi on November third, two thousand
and nine, with her parents, meeting Australian government's REPS John Chase,
Amanda's parents and a friend. They finalized a ransom deal
with a don five hundred and forty eight one thousand,
plus an extra one hundred and thirty five thousand, likely
for a Dan himself, just two days before their departure. However,
(29:43):
upon arrival, communication with a Dance stopped and they were
introduced to new contact replacing him.
Speaker 9 (29:50):
We were booked to go home on the second time.
When the money went in the second time, I was
just like, yep, right, that's it, and I'm you know,
at that point in time, we were no longer speaking
to dam They've been sold on once again, and we're
talking to the king King. And fortunately at that point
(30:10):
in time, we were having conversations with our Somali and
interpreter at the same time as well too, so he
was in on the phone calls plus Amanda's mum and
I and John at that point in time, but he
was just listening to the kidnappers from Nairobi.
Speaker 2 (30:30):
After fifteen months held at gunpoint in lawless Somalia, Nigel
Brennan is on his way home.
Speaker 3 (30:36):
For four hundred and sixty two days, our family has
hoped that this day would come.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
In a brief, sometimes difficult media conference, his family revealed
their hell since last August.
Speaker 3 (30:49):
This has been an unbelievably harrowing and wearing ordeal and
nothing could have prepared us as a family for what
we have gone through since Nigel's capture.
Speaker 1 (31:00):
Twenty fifth, a captor entered Nigel's room, demanding he changed
into new clothes and leave outside. He was ordered into
a vehicle and there was Amanda. He hadn't seen her
since their escape attempt.
Speaker 5 (31:15):
But we were like, what's going on?
Speaker 4 (31:17):
And it was sort of late afternoon on dusk, and
driven around for what felt like about two hours until.
Speaker 5 (31:24):
It was dark, and then we pulled up.
Speaker 4 (31:26):
You know, we'd sort of created this convoy of three vehicles,
and we pulled up in the bush somewhere and then
we're taken out of our car and put into like
a low station wagon. Then two guys asked us our names,
and we were there for about maybe ten to fifteen minutes,
and then we drove off and left our captors and
(31:47):
drove down the road and about five k's down the road,
you know, massive Tonado with a fifty.
Speaker 5 (31:56):
MILLI made a gun.
Speaker 4 (31:57):
Hanging off the back of it sort of blocked our
path and all of these guys in army fatigues or
not army fatigues, but with AK forty seven's came out
and I was like, oh my god, this this doesn't
look good. And it wasn't until we were taken out
of that there and put into another four wheel drive
and a guy who was in the car he was
(32:22):
trying to calm this down, and who was like, why
are you being hysterical because both of us were, and
he said, you've been released, and I think I sort
of said, well, if we've been released, where are the
white people? Because I couldn't see any white people there.
And he finally took a phone out of his pocket
and gave it to Amanda, and it was Amanda's man
(32:45):
on the phone.
Speaker 9 (32:46):
There was this whole fear in trepidation because people knew
that they had been paid for and we're thinking cheeses.
Speaker 3 (32:57):
Christ.
Speaker 9 (32:57):
Imagine if someone just breaks it and takes them again.
Speaker 2 (33:04):
Thirty seven year old Brennan and Canadian journalist Amanda lid
Out were kidnapped while covering the refugee crisis in Somalia. Seven.
You spoke to him in his hotel today.
Speaker 3 (33:14):
He answered the phone very confidently, said hello.
Speaker 4 (33:17):
I said how are you?
Speaker 1 (33:18):
And he said, I'm okay, I'm great.
Speaker 2 (33:20):
But for months they've been locked up, stripped, naked, starved.
Speaker 4 (33:24):
There are times that I was beaten and I was tortured.
Speaker 3 (33:30):
Extremely extremely difficult situation.
Speaker 4 (33:33):
Yeah, it's hard to put into like I think I
was again because I had sort of compartmentalized my motion.
Speaker 5 (33:40):
I think I just grabbed mum and neck and we
sort of walked.
Speaker 4 (33:44):
We walked into the hospital where I spent the next
five days sort of obviously undergoing a lot of medical
and dental work and those sorts of things before going
into like another five days of fairly intense psychological work
and working with ISTRAI and Federal Polastis sort of daybreak
as much as I could before I came home.
Speaker 7 (34:11):
I'll never forget being called at dawn one morning, Vibe
Pater style from my office in Cambrida to say Nigel's released.
And it was a fantastic feeling that they actually, the
two of them were actually on their way back to Nairobi,
where Nigel's parents were waiting to greet him.
Speaker 1 (34:35):
On February fourth, twenty ten, Bob Brown called for a
Center inquiry into the federal government's approach to Australians kidnapped overseas.
He said the decision came in response to the government's
handling on Nigel's case and others like it.
Speaker 7 (34:52):
So we recommend this Senate inquiry recommended that in future
cases where kidnapped they're family or friends who want to
help them be told directly and first up by defat
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade that there are intermediaries
(35:14):
who can help them get to negotiate an outcome which
may lead to the release of their loved ones. That
that was the best avenue to go. Now whether or
not that's happened since I don't know, I don't think
the government and the governments of the day quite realized
(35:36):
the circumstances that a kidnap person's in. In fact, they
are appalling circumstances. It's difficult all around, but that Senate
Inquiry made that recommendation. It's fundamental and will be fundamental
because more Australians will be kidnapped and dangerous places around
(35:58):
the world and when they are. If the government's not
going to take action, it should at least advise people
who want to take action on how best to do it,
and not sit around with it on the hands for
months and refuse to answer phone calls. That's a deadly
hopeless course of action and it should never be repeated.
(36:19):
It put Nigel and Amanda through months of hell they
shouldn't have had to endure, and that should not happen
again in the future when the inevitable kidnapping of another
Australian occurs.
Speaker 1 (36:38):
You have listened to seven New Spectrum Taken for Ransom
in Somalia. This episode was produced and voiced by me
Marlon Haglunds.
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