Relatives of sailors seized by Somali pirates detained in Karachi — Dawn
In Karachi, Pakistan, police briefly detained several relatives of Pakistani sailors who have been held hostage by Somali pirates aboard the tanker MT Honour 25 for more than four months on the morning of September 7. The families were holding an overnight sit-in protest near the Foreign Ministry building close to Shahrah-e-Faisal and planned to march to the Supreme Court registry in the morning. This was reported by Dawn.
Aisha Amin, the wife of one of the hostages, said those detained were taken to a police station and relatives were not allowed to see them for a long time. According to her, police also treated the protesters roughly. Aisha Amin, whose husband Amin bin Shams worked on the vessel as a fitter, said the detentions began at around 7:45 a.m.
An unnamed police representative confirmed to the publication that those detained were later released. Dawn journalists sought comment from the leadership of Karachi's East District police, but received no response.
Families' protests
The sailors' relatives have repeatedly held protests demanding that their release be secured. In a video address from the protest site, Aisha Amin said the families had been seeking the hostages' return for four and a half months, but their demands had not been heard. She stressed that the protesters had not blocked roads or committed any unlawful acts.
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In another video, filmed inside a vehicle resembling a police van, the uncle of the vessel's second engineer, Talib Raza, said that women, elderly people and children had been detained. In another recording, a woman who was inside the vehicle said the protesters had been taken away merely because they spoke about their problems.
Seizure of MT Honour 25
The Palau-flagged oil tanker MT Honour 25 was seized by armed pirates on April 21 off the coast of Puntland, Somalia. The hostages include 10 Pakistani citizens, as well as sailors from Indonesia, India and Sri Lanka.
Over more than four months of captivity, no significant progress in negotiations or ransom payments has been reported. The ransom amount is estimated at about $3 million. The crew has repeatedly recorded video and audio appeals, reporting shortages of clean water, food and medicine. The latest appeal was dated August 7: the sailors asked Pakistan's government to negotiate with the pirates and take measures to secure their release.
Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said it was actively working to bring the sailors back. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar also called for urgent and effective institutional intervention during a meeting with the head of the International Maritime Organization.
