Pomeranians? Antarcticans? Surely not
Somali pirates?"I do not know who will pay (a possible ransom) but I repeat that we have not received such a request," told AFP Nasseredine Mansouri, director of the owner of International Bulk Carriers (IBC).
"So, really, they may not want any money, right?"
According to IBC (joint venture with Saudi-majority), the Algerian flag bulk carrier "MV BLIDA" has 27 crew members, including 17 of Algerian nationality. The ship's captain and five crew members are Ukrainian and there are also Filipino sailors on board, a Jordanian and an Indonesian.
Mr. Mansouri said he was unable "to say with certainty that the pirates are Somali." He also sought to reassure the families of the crew, noting that "since the acts of piracy began in this area no crew members were killed or maimed."
Algerian Transport Minister Amar Tou has confirmed that there was no contact with the pirates on the sidelines of a parliamentary day on road safety in Blida, about fifty miles southwest of Algiers.
"We know where the ship is at any moment because we have the COSS system (a device for monitoring the safety and security of the ship) that allows us to locate the boat," said the minister who was quoted by the agency APS.
The boat was 150 miles southeast of the port of Salalah (Oman) and was heading to Dar es Salaam in Tanzania when it was attacked, according to the European naval force Atalanta in Brussels.
IBC (International Bulk Carriers), a subsidiary of CNAN Group established in 2007, is specializing in shipping homogeneous cargo.