Somali pirates initiate direct contact with families of kidnapped Pakistani crew members

KARACHI:

Somali pirates have begun contacting directly the families of the ten Pakistani crew members who were kidnapped, it emerged on Monday.

Somali pirates have created a WhatsApp group called “Pakistani Crew Families.” To this group, the pirates have added a relative of each of the ten kidnapped Pakistanis.

A video was shared on the WhatsApp group showing the 10 Pakistani hostages. In the video you can see the captives along with two bottles of cloudy water, which they were supposedly forced to drink on board the ship.

The hackers confiscated and formatted the mobile phones of all crew members except the captain’s, which remains in their possession. The WhatsApp group was created using that device. The hackers also created a TikTok account using the identity of the MT Honor 25 ship, with a group photo of the Pakistani hostages as the profile picture.

Read more: Video of hostage crew emerges after 26 days in captivity by Somali pirates

On Eid, the pirates allowed each hostage to talk to their family. Ayesha, the wife of crew member Amin, said that during a brief conversation, Amin told her that the ship’s main engine had broken down and the tanker was now stranded at one location. He further said that during the past week, other pirate groups had twice attempted to seize their ship, but the pirates holding them captive successfully repelled those attacks. During these incidents shots were exchanged and bullets hit the ship; However, all the hostages were unharmed.

In a video message, hostage Yasir Khan appealed to the Prime Minister, President and Army Chief to take concrete steps to ensure his release. He said it was becoming increasingly difficult for the Pakistani crew to survive in the current conditions, as food shortages and contaminated drinking water were causing the spread of diseases. The oil tanker has been kidnapped for 42 days now.

Also read: Relatives of Somali hostages seek government action

Pakistani authorities say diplomatic efforts are underway to secure the release of the Pakistani crew members aboard the ship. However, both the hostages and the pirates have rejected these government claims in previously released videos.

Qurrat-ul-Ain Advocate, director of the Ansar Burney Welfare Trust, said the group had contacted both the Pakistan People’s Party and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan regarding the release of the hostages. According to her, the leaders of both parties assured them that they would raise the issue for discussion during the upcoming sessions of the Senate and Parliament.