Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Somali pirates free Greek-owned vessel

Somali pirates have freed a Greek-owned chemical tanker captured in late March, the shipping firm and a regional maritime group said on Monday, but the company would not say whether any ransom had been paid.

Fuelled by large payoffs, Somali pirates have run amok in the strategic shipping lanes connecting Europe to Asia despite a flotilla of foreign warships patrolling the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden.

"Following regular contact with the captain and very recent telephone conversations, LOTUS can confirm that the crew is well and that there have been no injuries," the shipping company said in a statement.

It said it would not comment on details of the release.

"Any discussions or comments on these matters is considered highly irresponsible and could endanger the lives of those crews still being held and those of crews taken in the future."

Somalia's interim government has condemned firms who pay ransoms. Sea gangs have made millions of dollars from seizing ships and crews. Observers expect the number of attacks to fall in coming months as the monsoon season makes waters too choppy.

The MT Nipayia was released on Saturday after being seized on March 25, the firm said. The crew included one Russian and 18 Filipinos, the East African Seafarers Assistance Programme said.

The Panama-flagged vessel had no cargo and was en route from Madagascar to the Persian Gulf when taken, the piracy monitoring group said.

Analysts say the best way to combat piracy is to ensure stability onshore in Somalia -- which has been without effective central rule for more than 18 years.

President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed's government has been promised $213 million to help boost its security forces and fight piracy.

Western nations have sent warships to try to stop the gangs, who are holding about 20 vessels with nearly 300 hostages, according to piracy monitoring groups and the London-based International Maritime Bureau.

In Kenya's Mombasa port, 11 suspected brigands were charged on Monday with piracy for attempting to attack a French naval vessel. The suspects denied the charges and said they were fishing when the frigate arrested them.

On Saturday, gunmen let go a British-owned ship and its 16 Bulgarian crew after a $2 million ransom was paid, according to pirate sources.

Source: Reuters

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