SOMALI PIRATES RELEASED
A Hijacked Ship, MV Abdullah, And Its Crew Of 23 Early On Sunday After A $5
Million Ransom Was Paid, According To Two Pirates.
"The Money Was
Brought To Us Two Nights Ago As Usual... We Checked Whether The Money Was Fake
Or Not. Then We Divided The Money Into Groups And Left, Avoiding The Government
Forces," Abdirashiid Yusuf, One Of The Pirates, Told Reuters.
He Added The Ship Had
Been Released With All Its Crew. Somalia Government Officials Did Not Respond
To A Request For Comment.
The MV Abdullah, A Bangladesh-Flagged
Bulk Carrier - A Type Of Merchant Ship Used To Transport Large Amounts Of Cargo
- Was Hijacked In March As It Was Heading From Mozambique To The United Arab
Emirates.
The Hijacking Happened
About 600 Nautical Miles East Of Somalia's Capital Mogadishu.
Somali Pirates Caused
Chaos In The Waters Off The Country's Long Coastline From About 2008 To 2018. They
Had Been Dormant Until Late Last Year When Pirate Activity Started To Pick Up
Again.
Maritime Sources
Say Pirates May Be Encouraged By A Relaxation Of Security Or May Be
Taking Advantage Of The Chaos Caused By Attacks On Shipping By Yemen's Iran-Aligned
Houthi Group While War Rages In Gaza Between Israel And The Palestinian Militant
Group Hamas.