Progress Made On Freeing MV Abdullah Sailors: FM

Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud says that the progression of freeing the hijacked ship MV Abdullah's sailors has been made in discussions with the pirates who have hijacked the ship.  

The minister made the statement at the YNT Centre in Chattogram on Saturday in a discussion with journalists.

Meanwhile the families of the hostages have  placed their urgent appeal on the regard of releasing before Eid. Whiel asking  tje discussions progress on their release, Mahmud said, “Our efforts are ongoing. We are working on all fronts. Discussions are ongoing with the hijackers and the sailors are fine.”

“There is no problem with food. They are in their cabins. As the dialogue has progressed quite far, we hope that it will be possible to release them soon.”

On Mar 12, the MV Abdullah – a ship owned by SR Shipping, a subsidiary of Kabir Group – was hijacked by Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean. The vessel was carrying 55,000 tonnes of coal from Mozambique to the United Arab Emirates. The 23 sailors – all of whom are Bangladeshis – were taken hostage.

After taking the control of the ship, the pirates moved the vessel off the coast of Somalia. On that time they repeatedly shifted the position of the ship. Nine days after the hijacking, the pirates contacted the owners of the vessel.

“Foreign ships are on alert around the vessel,” Mahmud said. In addition to negotiations, there is pressure on the hijackers, so we hope the ship and its crew will be freed soon.”

He added, “We cannot give an exact date, but there has been progress. The crew of the ship do not get holidays before or after Eid. They work for six months to a year. If the ship had not been hijacked, they would not have left the ship before Eid or reunited with their families.”

Meanwhile Indian Navy warships and a warship from the European Union Naval Force’s Operation ATALANTA followed the MV Abdullah from the beginning after was hijacked, but raided was not possible as the sailors were held at gunpoint.

In consequences Bangladesh has not approved any operations on the vessel by international forces. The owner has repeatedly said that, as in the past, they want to free the sailors and the ship by paying a ransom.