Torture of a Norwegian ship's crew. The torture, stress reactions and psychiatric after-effects

Abstract

During the summer of 1984, 14 seamen, the entire crew of a Norwegian ship, were seized upon arrival in Libya. They were kept under arrest for 67 days and subjected to psychological and physical torture because they were suspected of being enemies of the Libyan state. Within the first few days of imprisonment one seaman had been murdered, another had been abducted and was believed to be dead, and a third had been severely physically maltreated. The immediate reactions to the extreme stress were fear, depression and rage. Not a single seaman gave in to the torture. Shortly after their release, all the seamen underwent thorough medical examinations. Six of them suffered from clear-cut post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and one more seaman developed the disorder two months later. In spite of comprehensive treatment, the same seven sailors, or 54% of the crew, still suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder six months after their release. Used in conjunction with clinical interview, general mental status rating scales (GHQ 20, STAI, State Anxiety Inventory), and specific post-traumatic rating scales (Amnesty Score, IES intrusion subscale, PTSS-10) had a high sensitivity and specificity in discriminating between cases and non-cases.