Eight Sri Lankan crew members in the hijacked oil tanker by the Somali pirates were released without a payment or ransom, the crew members confirmed to Ada Derana.
The vessel company stated that the pirates did not demand ransom to release the oil tanker and its crew.
The released tanker is now heading to Somalia while the crew members are expected to reach Sri Lanka by Sunday (19), it said.
Somali pirates who seized the Comoros-flagged oil tanker earlier this week after five years without a major hijacking in the region have released the ship and its crew without conditions.
Commenting on the incident, Deputy Minister Harsha de Silva in a Facebook post said, “Happy to report our efforts paid off and all Sri Lankan crew is safe. We thank the President of Puntland Region Mr Gaas and his Chief of Staff Mr Abdinasir Sofe who continuously communicated with us to defuse the escalation that saw shots being fired. We appreciate the understanding that led to a negotiated settlement. Our appreciation to Combined Naval Force in Bahrain, EU Defence and Sri Kanka Navy. We thank the US government for helping us establish contact between us and the Puntland Presidency and all others who helped. Relieved!”
Meanwhile, the AP reported, Abdirizak Mohamed Ahmed, the director of Puntand anti-piracy agency, has also confirmed the release of the ship Thursday night and said naval forces had boarded it to escort it to port.
The European Union anti-piracy operation in the region had said the pirates had been holding the crew captive and demanding a ransom.
Ahmed said the Puntland naval forces had been dispatched to the area not to free the ship by force but to cut off any supplies to the pirates.
Mohamed said the release occurred after negotiations by local elders and local officials with the pirates, who seized the tanker on Monday and held eight Sri Lankan crew members hostage.
Earlier Thursday, Naval forces clashed with the pirates after they opened fire.
The hijacking of the Comoros-flagged tanker Aris 13 was the first such seizure of a large commercial vessel off Somalia since 2012. (With inputs from AP)
