Somali pirates release Vietnamese hostage after 4 years of captivity.
The Somali government announced on October 22 that a group of pirates off its coast had released 26 Asian hostages they had abducted four years ago in the Indian Ocean, including Vietnamese citizens.
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| The hostages have just been released. (Source: theguardian.com) |
Sources from the country's authorities say that the hostages will be taken to Kenya's capital, Nairobi.
Meanwhile, the mayor of Galkayo, Somalia, said the captain of the hijacked ship was killed in a pirate attack four years ago and two other sailors died while being held captive.
The official also did not know how much ransom had to be paid to the pirates in exchange for the release of the crew members.
The freed sailors are from China, the Philippines, Cambodia, Indonesia, Taiwan, and Vietnam. Their ship was hijacked in January 2012 in the area near the Seychelles, a sea region bordering three continents—Asia, Europe, and Africa—where pirate attacks are frequent. This is also considered one of the longest periods of captivity in a Somali pirate kidnapping.
Over the past three years, the number of pirate attacks off the coast of Somalia has decreased significantly due to the presence of more international military vessels and the increasing popularity of hiring anti-piracy security services from companies.
According to Vietnamplus
