The mother of a Kent man kidnapped and beaten in Zimbabwe has flown to be at his bedside when he faces a major operation.

Claire Freeth, from Sittingbourne, has flown to Harare where son Ben, 38, will have surgery to reduce swelling on his brain.

Along with his parents-in-law, Ben was kidnapped from the family farm by aides of Robert Mugabe, who is demanding they give up their land and the farm they built.

~ Listen to Ben Freeth's father, Zach, speaking to kmfm's Antony Masters >>>
Please note, the clip contains descriptions of torture.

Animals have been slaughtered, their power generators stolen and their food supplies cut off as warnings, but on Sunday they were violently attacked.

Ben's wife Laura fled to safety with their three children and their passports while her parents, Angela, 71 and Mike Campbell, 75, were savagely beaten, bundled into a car and driven off.

Mrs Freeth said before she left on Wednesday: "There is a very good surgeon in Harare, so Ben will be operated on by him.

"Laura went up on Tuesday night to be with him and see her mum and dad as well. She was so thrilled that I could come straight away, things were beginning to overwhelm her and she really felt I would give continuity for the children.

"So many people have asked what they can do to help and we are so grateful for their prayers."

During the attack on Sunday, the mob took them a short distance away from their home before drenching them in ice cold water and dumping them on the side of the road.

Ben and Mike are confronting the terror campaign head-on, by taking president Robert Mugabe to an international court. They have bravely resisted bullying, violent and intimidating tactics to force them off the estate.

The mob which beat them was demanding that they drop their case against Mugabe and sign their land and farm over.