ISLAMABAD: Three Pakistani crew members of the hijacked oil tanker MT Honour 25 are set to return home after more than five months in captivity, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said.
Dar said Imran Ali, Husain Yousuf and Muhammad Yasin were en route from Addis Ababa to Karachi on Wednesday after being rescued and taken to the Ethiopian capital.
“The three sailors — Imran Ali, Muhammad Yasin and Syed Husain Yousuf — were rescued and taken to Addis Ababa accompanied by a team from the Embassy of Pakistan in Djibouti,” Dar said in a post on X.
He said Pakistan’s ambassador in Addis Ababa met the three crew members and ensured they received the necessary facilities and services during their stay.
Dar said the Foreign Office and the government had made every effort to secure the safe return of the crew.
The development comes after the loss of three other Pakistani crew members during the operation to recover the tanker.
Five months in captivity
The Palau-flagged MT Honour 25, carrying petroleum products, was hijacked by armed pirates off Puntland, Somalia, on April 21.
The vessel had 17 crew members aboard, including 10 Pakistanis. It was carrying about 18,500 barrels of oil and was seized around 30 nautical miles off the Puntland coast while sailing towards Mogadishu.
The crew remained in captivity for more than five months. Pakistani sailors and their families repeatedly appealed to the government for intervention after crew members reported deteriorating conditions, including shortages of food and medicine.
Families of the sailors also staged protests in Karachi demanding their relatives’ release.
Reports said the pirates had demanded a ransom, although no confirmed ransom payment or agreement was reached.
Rescue operation turns deadly
The hostage ordeal ended on Sept. 29 when the Puntland Maritime Police Force launched an operation to recover the tanker in the Dharin-Bar area of Bandar Beyla district.
Puntland authorities said their forces secured the vessel and detained suspected pirates. Five crew members were killed and four others injured.
The dead included three Pakistanis, one Indian and one Myanmar national. The Pakistani victims were later identified as Rafi Ullah Khan, Syed Kashif Umer and Mahmood Ahmad Ansari.
There have been differing accounts of when the five crew members were killed. Puntland authorities said the pirates had killed them before the security operation, while accounts relayed through the Ansar Burney Trust said the pirates opened fire as Puntland forces approached the vessel. The exact sequence has not been independently established.
Dar said Pakistan remained committed to working with international partners to combat piracy and ensure the safety of seafarers and maritime routes.
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