Pirates who seized a Comoros-flagged oil tanker have released the ship without conditions, an official says.Security official Ahmed Mohamed said the pirates have left the ship, which is now heading to Bossaso port, the region’s commercial hub. He says the release occurred after negotiations by local elders and local officials with the pirates, who seized the tanker on Monday.
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The hijacking of the Comoros-flagged tanker Aris 13 was the first such seizure of a large commercial vessel off Somalia since 2012.
The Aris 13 on Monday reported being approached by two skiffs, John Steed with the organization Oceans Beyond Piracy said. The ship had been carrying fuel from Djibouti to Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, he said. Eight Sri Lankan crew members were reported aboard.
An official in the semi-autonomous state of Puntland said more than two dozen men boarded the ship off Somalia’s northern coast, an area known to be used by weapons smugglers and members of the al-Qaida-linked extremist group al-Shabab.
The ship was anchored off the town of Alula, said Salad Nur, a local elder.
‘The ship is on the coast now and more armed men boarded the ship,’ he said by phone.
An official based in the Middle East with knowledge of the incident said that no ransom demand had been made.
| Deutsche Welle adds: |