A U.S. military official says the American sea captain held hostage by Somali pirates was in «imminent danger» of being killed by his captors before U.S. Special Operations forces fatally shot them, according to dpa. The hostage, Richard Phillips, was not hurt in the several minutes of gunfire off the Somali coast on Sunday. Phillips was safely transported to a Navy warship nearby. The military official said three pirates were killed and one surrendered to U.S. forces. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the event publicly. The Pentagon was preparing to brief reporters on the rescue mission at 4 p.m. EDT Sunday. The military official described a tense and terrifying few minutes for Phillips. He said the situation appeared imminent» and that forces shot the pirates to death.