Four Pakistani crew members held hostage by pirates off Somalia have been rescued and are expected to arrive in Karachi on Saturday, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said.
The bodies of three Pakistani crew members who died are also being repatriated, while three others remain aboard the hijacked vessel alongside its captain, Dar said in a statement on X.
The 10 Pakistanis were among 17 crew members aboard the Palau-flagged oil tanker Honour 25, which was hijacked off Somalia’s northern coast on April 21 while heading to Mogadishu, according to the European Union’s naval Operation Atalanta.
Dar attributed the rescue to sustained efforts by Pakistan’s Foreign Office and its embassy in Djibouti. He did not provide details of how the four crew members were freed or the circumstances surrounding the three deaths.
He expressed condolences to the bereaved families and said efforts were continuing to secure the return of those still aboard.
“We are actively coordinating with our friendly countries to facilitate their safe extraction and earliest possible return to Pakistan,” Dar said.
