(March 11, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) The Saudi company that owns the vessel currently being held by pirates off the Somali coast with a 13-member Sri Lankan crew has decided to release two month wages to the affected families, the local shipping agent said today.
Captain S. H. R. Kumar said the monies will be channeled to the families in Sri Lanka through the Foreign Office in Colombo. “This was aimed at bringing immediate relief to the affected families”, Kumar said.
The crew had boarded the Saudi flagged tanker from a port in Japan on February 14.
Meanwhile negotiations are continuing in the Saudi port city of Jeddah between the relevant insurance companies on the ransom demand made by the pirates in return for release of the vessel and crew, Captain Kumar said.
The MT Al Nisr Al Saudi was grabbed by pirates off the Gulf of Aden early last week and taken to the pirate strong hold of Garad on the Somalian coast.
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