Pakistani crew members being held aboard the vessel MT Honour 25 have appealed to the Pakistani government for urgent intervention to secure their release, following the emergence of a new video showing the deterioration of their humanitarian conditions after nearly two months in captivity at the hands of pirates off the coast of Somalia. The vessel, carrying 17 crew members, including 10 Pakistanis, was hijacked near the Puntland region on April 21.
In the video message, the ship’s second officer, Syed Kashif Umar, stated that the Pakistani sailors had spent 57 days in captivity and were suffering from food shortages, with some crew members falling ill. He urged the authorities to pressure the shipowners to enter into negotiations with the kidnappers. The vessel’s captain, an Indonesian national, also issued a similar appeal to his government to help secure the crew’s release.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs had earlier affirmed that efforts to secure the release of the detained Pakistani nationals were continuing. Diplomatic sources indicated that the vessel remains anchored off the Somali coast and that negotiations with the pirates are still ongoing. According to the sources, the hijackers have reduced their ransom demand from $10 million to $4 million, but the talks have so far failed to produce any breakthrough, while the sailors’ families continue to urge the authorities to intensify efforts to bring them home safely.
اشترك لتصلك أبرز التغطيات والقصص الحصرية من فريق الأسطل مباشرةً إلى بريدك.