Somali pirates. A $2 million ransom was paid to free the sailors.Their vessel was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden on November 11th as it was heading towards Suez from Malaysia. The ship's 31 crew members, including 22 Tunisians, were released on March 17th.
"It was the worst time of our lives," ship captain Faouzi Fradi said. "We could have easily been killed if we did something rash or got involved in a fight with any of them. But we were quiet. I thought of my family and children and hoped to go home safe and my wish came true. Thank God, I am back and will see them again."
A unit of French Marines first had to find the ship, and later on, another unit had to ensure the ship's safety until it made it to Djibouti, explained Admiral Chedli Cherif, who was in charge of the negotiations with the Somali pirates. The Tunisian government also dispatched an aircraft with a military medical team to fly the crew home from Djibouti.
"We reached a solution nearly a month ago after long strenuous negotiations. Discussions were tough, because as time went by, their demands grew," Tunisian Transport Minister Yacine Ibrahim said.
| That seems backward. Clearly none of them has read "The Ransom of Red Chief". |
As for how the ransom was handed over to the pirates, a Tunisian foreign ministry official explained that it was dropped aboard the Hannibal II by a helicopter.
Crew member Haitham Ka'loul told Magharebia, "We had to fast for days because the food was not enough. They gave us their leftovers which were mostly boiled rice and in some cases very little fish. We ate, slept and prayed at their commands.
| "An' they didn't realize their compass pointed toward Rome instead of Mecca, neither!" |
Aws Al-Khashini said they suffered the worst kind of treatment. "Human life is worthless to them. The only thing they care about is money. I don't think they are Mohammedans. Islam cannot have anything to do with those practices because ransoms are unlawful in Islam."
| Muslims don't kill other Muslims either, or so we've been told. |