Twenty Filipino seamen kidnapped by pirates in Somalia in March have been released and are on their way home, officials said on Monday.
The men were freed unharmed on Saturday, and it wasn’t immediately clear whether any ransom had been paid, said Roy Cimatu, the government’s special envoy to the Middle East.
”I am not privy to their negotiations, but piracy is rampant there. So most likely ransom was paid. Almost all shipping lines pay ransom,” Cimatu told the Associated Press.
The men were seized after their oil tanker, the United Arab Emirates-registered MT LIN1, offloaded its cargo at a southern Somali port on March 29, the Philippine Foreign Affairs Department said.
The department said the owners of the ship, the Akron Trade and Transport Company, based in Fujairah, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), negotiated for the men’s release.
It said the company’s representative, Manoj Sabharwal, informed the Philippine Embassy in the UAE that all crew members were safe and none required medical attention.
They were expected to arrive in Fujairah next week, the department said.
Piracy in Somalia rose sharply last year, with 35 reported incidents compared with two in 2004, according to the International Maritime Bureau. The bandits target both passenger and cargo vessels for ransom or to loot. — Sapa-AP