Sunday, December 02, 2007
"According to information we have received, the ship has been released," Andrew Mwangura, of the East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme, told Reuters of the Al Marjan, citing shipping sources in the area.
"They must have paid a ransom. They cannot be released so easily if not. But we don't have full details yet."
Mwangura said he thought the Al Marjan would come to Kenya's Mombasa port, from where it headed to Mogadishu with general cargo before being seized 10 nautical miles offshore on Oct. 21.
"Since she was hijacked, there were no communications at all. It is a relief she's free," said Mwangura, whose Mombasa-based group seeks to help sailors in the region and is a key source of information on piracy.
The crew were mainly Indian nationals, added Mwangura.
Piracy has been rife off Somalia since it plunged into anarchy with the 1991 fall of a dictator.
Pirates also hijacked a Japanese chemical tanker, the Golden Nori, at the end of October, and are thought to be seeking a ransom of more than $1 million. The Golden Nori's 23-man crew are from Myanmar, the Philippines and South Korea. (Reporting by Andrew Cawthorne; editing by Myra MacDonald)
Source: Reuters, Dec 02, 2007