Families of Pakistani Sailors Protest as Somali Piracy Captivity Nears 140 Days

GOOBJOOG NEWS | KARACHI: Families of 10 Pakistani sailors held by Somali pirates for nearly 140 days have intensified protests in Karachi, demanding that the government secure the safe release of their relatives, amid growing concern over their health and living conditions.

The sailors are among the 17 crew members of the Palau-flagged oil tanker MT Honour 25, which was seized by pirates off Somalia’s Puntland coast on April 21.

Families staged protests in Karachi over the weekend and later held a sit-in outside Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry office, with police briefly detaining several protesters before releasing them. Relatives said they had received little information about efforts to free the sailors and had not spoken to them for about a month and a half.

Ambreen Yousuf, whose husband Syed Hussain Yousuf is among those held, said the families had grown tired of waiting and urged the government to bring the sailors home safely. Mahwish Yasir, whose husband Yasir Khan is also being held, warned that the families could begin a hunger strike if they continued to receive no clear information.

The prolonged captivity has also raised concerns about the sailors’ families. Ayesha Ameen, whose husband Ameen bin Shams is among the captives, said her children had been growing up without their father while the family waited for news.

DIPLOMATIC EFFORTS

Pakistan says it is pursuing diplomatic and humanitarian efforts to secure the sailors’ release. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has directed officials to intensify engagement with Somali authorities, international organisations and other partners.

Dar also met International Maritime Organization Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez in London in August and sought urgent institutional intervention to help secure the sailors’ return. Pakistan has separately called for food, drinking water and other basic necessities to reach the crew.

Officials have said a direct operation to free the sailors would be difficult because the tanker is carrying potentially dangerous cargo, making a military or law-enforcement intervention particularly risky.

The case comes as piracy has again emerged as a maritime security concern off Somalia after years of relative calm. The IMO said in July that crews aboard several vessels, including the Honour 25, faced dwindling supplies of food and water.

For the families in Karachi, however, the priority remains the same: securing the safe return of the 10 Pakistani sailors, whose captivity has now stretched into its fifth month.