Tuesday, October 14, 2008
The Wail was seized by Somali gunmen on Thursday as it carried cement to Bosasso from Oman. There are thought to be nine Syrian and two Somali crew members onboard.
"We have succeeded in saving the Panama-flagged ship and its crew," Ali Abdi Aware, state minister for the northern Puntland region, told Reuters. "The pirates have surrendered and the ship is in our hands now."
Puntland's commerce minister, Abdisamad Yusuf Abwan, confirmed the ship had been rescued and said it was slightly damaged after a shoot-out on Sunday in which one pirate and one Somali soldier were killed.
Somali pirates have hijacked more than 30 ships so far this year and received ransoms totalling $18-30 million.
In the highest profile case so far, ransom talks are continuing
after they seized a Ukrainian vessel, the MV Faina, which was loaded
with 33 T-72 tanks and other weaponry. (Reporting by Abdiqani Hassan;
Writing by Daniel Wallis; Editing by Giles Elgood)
SOURCE: Reuters, Tuesday, October 14, 2008