Somali Pirates Free 7 Pakistani Sailors, 15 Remain Hostage

Somali Pirates Free 7 Pakistani Sailors, 15 Remain Hostage

Somali pirates have freed seven Pakistani crew members, held hostage since 2010, after coming to a partial ransom agreement that let 7 of the 22 crew member go free. The negotiator working on this case says the family of the crew raised $1.1 million for the release of the crew onboard the MV Albedo. The amount fell short of the $2.85 million sought by the pirates under a deal reached in January by Dubai based negotiators.

The freed crew was greeted by family and friends upon their arrival in Karachi, Pakistan.

The remaining crew includes 6 Sri Lankans, 7 Bangladeshis, and 1 Indian, and 1 Iranian.

The MV Albedo was hijacked on November 26, 2010 in the Gulf of Aden, 900 nautical miles east of Mogadishu. At the time of the hijacking there were 23 crew members onboard, one Indian sailor has since died of Cholera.

The MV Albedo is a Malaysian-flagged container ship owned and operated by Majestic Enrich Shipping based in Pulau Pinang, Malaysia.

A website has been created to help raise funds for the reminaing crew, to learn how you can help, click here.

http://maritime-executive.com/