Somali pirates release Italian tanker, crew

The Enrico Ievoli, owned by Naples-based shipping company Marnavi, had been seized while it was traveling from the United Arab Emirates to the Mediterranean. The 138-meter-long vessel was carrying 15,750 tons of caustic soda when it was hijacked in the Indian Ocean.

The crew members are from Italy, India and Ukraine.

“The Italian Foreign Ministry confirms the release of the crew of the Italian ship ‘Enrico Ievoli’ off the Somali coast,” Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi said.

 The minister said that the release was made possible with the joint effort of Somali authorities. “This incident is further confirmation of the gravity of the security threat posed by the phenomenon of piracy,” Terzi said on Monday.

“We are all very well and everything is under control,” said the vessel’s captain, Agostino Musumeci.

In a statement to Italian news agency ANSA, ship owner Domenico Ievoli said that the vessel, carrying the crew and the Italian military, has already left Somalia. The military joined the tanker soon after it came out of Somali waters in order to protect its remaining journey.

Source: Allheadlinenews (AHN)