ISLAMABAD: Four of the ten Pakistani crew members affected by the hijacking of MV Honour 25 off the coast of Somalia have been safely retrieved and are scheduled to arrive in Karachi on Saturday (October 3), Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar said on Friday.
According to reports, Ishaq Dar said four of the 10 Pakistani nationals held hostage aboard the hijacked ship near Somalia had been safely rescued.
He said the rescued Pakistanis Yasir Khan, Aqeel Khan, Ameen bin Shams and Usman Ghani will reach Karachi tomorrow.
The deputy prime minister expressed condolences to the families of the Pakistanis who were killed and said legal procedures for bringing their bodies back to Pakistan have been expedited.
He assured the families that the bodies of the three Pakistanis killed in the incident Rafiullah Khan, Syed Kashif Umar and Mahmood Ahmed will be brought back soon.
Ishaq Dar said the remaining three Pakistani crew members Imran Ali, Yasin and Syed Yousuf are still aboard the ship.
He said active contacts with friendly countries are continuing for the recovery of the remaining crew members.
The foreign minister said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, efforts are being made to bring every Pakistani back home. He added that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to provide all possible assistance to the affected Pakistani families.
The oil tanker was hijacked by Somali pirates on April 21 this year while travelling from Oman to Somalia near the coast of Puntland, a semi-autonomous region of Somalia.
Ten Pakistani nationals were among the crew members held hostage. The government of Pakistan had been making efforts for their release through negotiations and contacts with the governments of relevant countries.
However, on September 29, the Puntland Maritime Police Force launched a major operation to free the ship.
Just before the forces began their operation, the pirates opened indiscriminate fire, resulting in the deaths of five people, including three Pakistani sailors — Rafiullah Khan, Syed Kashif Umar and Mahmood Ahmed Ansari.
