MV Abdullah with 23 sailors freed for$5 m dollars

Two European warships escort it tothe UAE port

Ayub Ali, Chattogram: The Bangladeshi ship MV Abdullah with 23 sailors has finally been released from the pirates of Somalia. The owner of the ship, the famous industrial company of Chattogram “KSRM Group” has confirmed this news at around 3:30 PM on Saturday in Bangladesh time. A source said the sailors were released after dollars were dropped on the ship from a helicopter. The source said that the ransom amount was USD 5000,000. However, State Minister of Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury stated that this information is not correct and said that based on international pressure and agreement, MV Abdullah was released along with the sailors. On March 12, the Bangladeshi ship was hijacked by Somali pirates.

They the pirates took the ship to the coast of Somalia. Nine days after being taken ashore, the pirates contacted the ship’s owner, the KSRM Group, for ransom. The owner of the ship gave a glimpse before Eid that the negotiations with the bandits were reaching the final stage after negotiations at various stages. It is known that after receiving the ransom dollar, the bandits disembarked from the ship. After that, the ship MV Abdullah started moving towards the port from the bandit-infested area with the joy of liberation. The happy sailors prostrated and thanked God Almighty.
The sailors gave the good news of the release to their parents, wives and relatives who were waiting in the country.
Shahriar Jahan Rahat, deputy managing director of KSRM Group, told this correspondent that the ship has been released with all the sailors, the ship has left for the United Arab Emirates. The vessel was carrying coal from Mozambique to the United Arab Emirates when it was hijacked by pirates. Heavily armed for more than a month.
He said the two EU warships have escorted the Bangladeshi vessel until it reached a safe zone. The members of EU Naval Force also spoke to the crews of MV Abdullah and inquired about their wellbeing.
The MV Abdullah is heading towards Port Al Hamriya in the UAE. The vessel is likely to reach the port by 21 April, according to the KSRM Group.
Bangladesh Merchant Marine Officers Association president, Captain Anam Chowdhury told media, “Those EU warships escorted the Bangladeshi vessel to ensure its security. Such initiatives from the EU Naval Force are also the results of its effort to establish that their anti-piracy operations off the Somali coast are still on. They spoke to crews of the hijacked vehicles to update their safety protocols.”
The news of the safe release of 23 sailors from the clutches of the bandits is a flood of joy among their family members. Once the ship reaches the UAE port, the process of repatriation of the sailors will begin. The sailors on the ship are – Master Mohammad Abdur Rashid, Chief Officer Atiqullah Khan, Second Officer Mozaherul Islam Chowdhury, 3rd officer N Mohammad Tarekul Islam, Deck Cadet Sabbir Hossain, Chief Engineer ASM Saiduzzaman, Second Engineer Md. Toufiqul Islam, third engineer. Rokan Uddin, fourth Engineer Tanveer Ahmed, Engine Cadet Ayub Khan, Electrician Ibrahim Khalil Ullah and crew-AnwarulHaque, Md. Asifur Rahman, Md. Sajjad Hossain, Joy Mahmud, Md. Nazmul Haque, AinulHaque, Mohammad Shamsuddin, Md. Ali Hossain, Mosharraf Hossain Shakeel, Md. Shariful Islam, Md. Nur Uddin and Md. Saleh Ahmad.
Earlier, on December 5, 2010, another ship of the same company, MV Jahan Mani, was captured by Somali pirates in the Arabian Sea. Along with 25 Bangladeshi sailors of that ship, 26 people including the wife of a captain were held hostage for 100 days. The hostages were released on March 14, 2011 through various processes including government initiatives. They returned to Bangladesh on March 15.