TANGERANG, (Indonesia): Four Indonesian seamen who were kidnapped and held hostage by Somali pirates aboard an oil tanker for more than five months arrived back home on Tuesday (Oct 6), an AFP reporter saw.
The men were among 17 crew rescued a week ago when maritime police from the semi-autonomous region of Puntland in northern Somalia stormed the Palau-flagged MT Honour 25 tanker that was hijacked in April.
Before the vessel could be recaptured, the pirates had already killed five crew members -- three Pakistanis, an Indian and a Myanmar national -- according to a Puntland police statement.
The four Indonesians were received at Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International Airport by their families and officials including Foreign Minister Arrmanatha Nasir.
In a welcome ceremony, Arrmanatha thanked the ship's Indonesian skipper Ashari Samadikun for helping ensure the surviving crew members remained safe during the rescue.
"I would also like to thank the families for their patience... because it is not easy to wait for news, not knowing the fate of their children, their husband on board the ship," the minister said.
Ashari expressed regret for the deaths of the five crew members.
"I sincerely apologise to the families of my five deceased crew members. I couldn't keep my promise to bring all my crew members back safely," he said through tears.
Puntland police said the Honour 25 had 18,500 barrels of oil on board.
Sixteen pirates were detained in the rescue operation, while others "fled towards the shore and moved inland", police added.
Somali piracy has seen a resurgence, with at least 15 attacks since April, the highest number since 2013.
Puntland police have faced criticism for failing to act against a new pirate network that has been highly active in the region this year.
Days before the Honour 25, they rescued another oil tanker, the Sibu 1.
But several pirates arrested in the operation escaped while being transferred to jail.
Puntland police also responded recently to the hijacking of the MT Eureka, forcing pirates to run the vessel aground before abandoning it and disembarking the crew.
All crew were later "confirmed safe", according to the police, while the pirates fled ashore. - AFP
