Crew released
July 18, 2009
In possession of a ransom and firing their guns into the air, Somali pirates turned loose the MV Victoria and its crew.
"We have taken a $1.8 million ransom and released the German ship," a pirate named Ahmed told Reuters from his hideout in the town of Eyl on the Somali coast.
The 146-meter ship, which belongs to a German shipping firm, was initially seized 75 kilometers (45 miles) south of the Yemeni port of Al -Mukalla while on its way to the Red Sea port of Jeddah.
The German foreign ministry in Berlin confirmed the release of the ship which is being operated with a Romanian crew and flying the Antigua and Barbuda flag.
Pirates are still holding hostage one other German ship, the Hansa Stavanger, which was seized on April 4 in the Indian Ocean.
Ship hijackings are at an all time high, with nearly 130 merchant ships being attacked last year according to the International Maritime Bureau's Piracy Reporting Center in Kuala Lumpur. That is an increase of more than 200 percent over 2007.
Jung unwilling to place soldiers aboard ships
The rise in hijackings have brought calls from German shipowners for more security and even the stationing of German troops on board vessels, a notion that was rejected by the German government.
"This is not a sensible proposal," said German Defense Minister Franz Josef Jung. "The Bundeswehr is already involved in the European anti-piracy mission known as 'Atalanta' which is directed at the Somali pirates."
There are currently dozens of warships deployed in the area by the world's naval powers to thwart Somali pirates, but they have a very large area to cover and not enough resources to do so.
av/Reuters/AFP
Editor: Trinity Hartman