MV Abdullah set to sail home from UAE Sunday
Chattogram Correspondent
The Bangladesh-flagged vessel MV Abdullah, freed from the grip of Somali pirates on April 14th following a reported $5 million ransom payment, is set to sail on its journey back to Bangladesh tomorrow from the United Arab Emirates.
Owned by SR Shipping Ltd, a subsidiary of Kabir Group, the bulk carrier concluded its cargo loading operations at Al Hamriyah Port jetty in Dubai, UAE, on Saturday, said Mizanul Islam, media adviser of Kabir Group.
It left the Al Hamriyah Port around 5:30 pm (Local time) today and will take berth at another port Mina Saqr in the UAE.
“MV Abdullah is expected to reach Bangladesh with the 23 crew members in mid-May,” he said.
Earlier, the vessel reached the Al Hamriyah Port on 21 April and started offloading the thermal coals the next day.
On 12 March, the vessel, with 23 Bangladeshi crew members on board, was hijacked by armed Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean.
The bulk carrier was en route from Maputo Port in Mozambique to Al Hamriyah Port, carrying 55,000 tonnes of thermal coal.
Pirates released the ship with its crews in the early hours of 14 April, after 32 days of captivity.
On 5 December 2010, Somali pirates seized another Bangladeshi vessel, MV JahanMoni, which belonged to the same company. After enduring 99 days in captivity, the pirates eventually released the vessel, along with its 25 crew members and the wife of the chief engineer, MatiulMawla.
The crew members finally returned to Chattogram on 21 March 2011.
