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

KARACHI:

Somali pirates have begun direct contact with the families of ten kidnapped Pakistani crew members, it was reported Monday.

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

A video was shared in the WhatsApp group showing the 10 Pakistani hostages. In the video, the captives can be seen with two bottles of cloudy water, which they would be forced to drink on board the ship.

The pirates seized and formatted the cell phones of all crew members except that of the captain, who remains in their possession. WhatsApp group was created using this 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.

Learn more: Video of hostage crew surfaces after 26 days of captivity by Somali pirates

During Eid, the pirates allowed each hostage to speak with their families. Ayesha, the wife of crew member Amin, said that during a brief conversation, Amin told her that the ship’s main engine had failed and the tanker was now stuck in one place. He further said that over the past week, other pirate groups had attempted to take over their ship twice, but the pirates holding them captive managed to repel those attacks. Gunfire was exchanged during these incidents and bullets hit the ship; however, all hostages remained unharmed.

In a video message, hostage Yasir Khan called on the prime minister, president and army chief to take concrete steps to secure their release. He said it was becoming increasingly difficult for the Pakistani crew to survive in the current conditions as lack of food and contaminated drinking water caused the spread of diseases. The tanker has been hijacked for 42 days.

Read also: Relatives of Somali hostages demand government action

Pakistani authorities say diplomatic efforts are underway to secure the release of the Pakistani crew members on board the ship. However, the hostages and 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 about the release of the hostages. According to her, leaders of both parties assured that they would raise the issue for discussion in the upcoming sessions of the Senate and Parliament.