[Arab News] The owner of a Saudi ship that was hijacked by Somali pirates in March with 14 crew members said that he made a mistake while speaking to Arab News last week in how much ransom the pirates were demanding."I told the reporter that the sum was $20 million. In fact, this was the amount previously demanded by the pirates which was greatly reduced later," said Kamal Arri, the owner of the Al-Nisr.
The ransom money is to be paid by his insurance company once approved by the Saudi Monetary Agency. Arri said he is still worried about the fate of sailors on board the ship and that it is because of this that he was unable to clarify the exact amount earlier to Arab News.
"I am only concerned now with the safe return of all sailors on board. They were desperate. In my last telephone conversation with them yesterday, the Greek captain complained that the pirates were making them sleep on deck while they were using the cabins and rooms themselves, and they have been physically beaten and tortured," he said.
The Al-Nisr, with 13 Sri Lankans and one Greek crew member, was seized on March 1 as it returned from Japan to the Saudi port of Jeddah and was not carrying any oil.