Six sailors kidnapped by pirates off the West African coast and held for weeks in Nigeria have been freed, according to the Danish shipping company Monjasa.
The crew members were abducted by pirates during an attack on their ship, the Monjasa Reformer, in the Gulf of Guinea on March 25.
The Danish-owned ship was sailing under the Liberian flag.
“All recovered crew members are in a relatively good health condition given the difficult circumstances they have been under in the last more than five weeks.
“They have all been receiving medical checks and are now being repatriated to their home countries to reunite with their families.”
Among the freed crew members were two Lithuanian sailors, born in 1958 and 1995, according to the Lithuanian Government.
The 135-metre oil and chemical tanker was 260 kilometres west of the port of Pointe-Noire in Congo at the time.
16 crew members were on board during the attack, of whom 10 were left aboard the ship, which was abandoned by the pirates and recovered by the French navy on March 30.
According to the company statement, the remaining six were taken ashore by the pirates and held in an undisclosed location in Nigeria before being freed.
The company praised the bravery of the kidnapped crew members and thanked their families for their patience and resilience.
The Gulf of Guinea is one of the most dangerous areas for merchant vessels worldwide, but the number of cases has fallen significantly in recent months. (dpa/NAN)
