Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty has directed continuous, around-the-clock follow-up of the incident, stressing that the ministry is working to secure the sailors’ safe release, the ministry stated.
The Egyptian embassy in Mogadishu is maintaining close contact with the Somali authorities and all relevant agencies to ensure suitable living conditions for the detained sailors and to expedite their release, the ministry said.
It added that the embassy has also facilitated communication between the Egyptian sailors and their families to reassure them about their condition.
The ministry said the Egyptian embassy in Riyadh, which is accredited to Yemen, is coordinating with Yemeni authorities and the vessel’s owner to support efforts to secure the crew’s release and ensure their welfare during the ordeal.
Abdelatty has also instructed the ministry’s consular sector to hold regular meetings with the sailors’ families to keep them informed of the latest developments and the ongoing efforts to secure their release.
Last week, the head of Egypt’s Maritime Officers Syndicate and liaison officer with the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), Captain El-Sayed El-Shazly El-Naggar, said in a media statement that negotiations with the hijackers had collapsed, returning the case “to square one” after the pirates reportedly demanded a higher ransom.
The MT Eureka was hijacked in early May off the Somali coast while sailing near Puntland. The vessel has a crew of 22, including eight Egyptians, and has remained anchored off Somalia since being seized by armed pirates.
Egypt has been coordinating with Somali authorities, the vessel’s owner, and relevant international bodies since the incident to secure the sailors’ safe release.
The families have urged Egyptian authorities and relevant international bodies to coordinate with naval forces operating in the region to pressure the ship’s owner or negotiate with the hijackers to secure the sailors’ safe return.
The abducted Egyptian crew members were identified, according to their families’ testimonies on social media, as third engineer Mohamed Radi Abdel Moneim Al-Mahasab, officer Moamen Akram Mokhtar Amin, chief engineer Mahmoud Galal Abdullah Al-Mekawy, sailor Sameh Abdel Azim El-Desouky El-Sayed, mechanic Aslam Adel Abdel Monsef Selim, electrical engineer Mohamed Ahmed Abdullah, welder Ahmed Mahmoud Saad Ismail Darwish, and cook Adham Salem Shaaban Gaber.
There are also several Indian sailors on the vessel.
Source: Ahram Online.
