A Shropshire man and his four sons were attacked by a mob armed with baseball bats, knives and bottles as they celebrated a stag night in Cyprus.

Simon Pierpoint and his family, from Bronygarth, near Oswestry, fled for their lives when their night out on the holiday island turned into violence.

The family’s ordeal began on Wednesday after Mr Pierpoint, his wife Jeanette and their five sons Jason, 24, Daniel, 22, Adam, 20, Oliver, 18, and Seb, 14, had flown to Cyprus for a family wedding.

Mr Pierpoint, who needed more than a dozen stitches after being hit on the head with a bottle, said: “Some of the family went out to the stag and hen nights in Bar Street in Paphos.

“We were all having a really good time until about 11.30pm when Oli got separated from the main group.

“Suddenly he was surrounded by a group of men who viciously attacked him. It was a completely unprovoked attack.”

The horrified father, older brothers and a cousin went to the the teenager’s aid.

“We managed to get him out of the melee and then basically ran for it. There were about 20 to 30 of them, with baseball bats, knifes and bottles – it was unbelievable.”

Mr Pierpoint also suffered broken ribs and broken bones in his right hand and his foot, injuries still bandaged and bruised.

His four elder sons also suffered a variety of injuries and all five were hospitalised.

“The ferocity of the attack and the fact that there were no police around really shocked me,” he said.

The five family members were kept in hospital but discharged themselves two days later on Friday to join Mrs Pierpoint and her youngest son at the wedding.

But Mr Pierpoint had to return to hospital and will still need follow up treatment in England.

A spokesman for the Foreign Office said the department was aware of the incident and was offering help to the family.

By Sue Austin