Three Pakistani sailors have been killed after Somali pirates opened fire on the crew of the hijacked MT Honour 25 as they fled the vessel during a rescue operation by Puntland forces.
A total of five crew members have been killed while four have been injured in the incident, including three Pakistanis, after Somali and Puntland security forces launched an operation to recover the oil tanker in the Dharin-baar area of Bandar Beyla District on Tuesday.
The Puntland Maritime Police Force said in a post on X that it had “carried out a maritime operation off the coast of Dharin-baar, Bandar Beyla District”, adding that the MT Honour 25 had been rescued and was under the control of the Puntland government.
The force initially said 21 suspected pirates had been apprehended during the operation, but later revised the number to 16.
Pakistani sailors Hussain Yousuf and Imran Ali, who survived the incident, contacted the Ansar Burney Welfare Trust office in Karachi using the ship captain’s mobile phone and shared details of the attack.
According to the surviving crew members, Somali and Puntland authorities launched the operation to free the hostages held by the pirates, leading to an exchange of fire between the security forces and the pirates.
The survivors said that the pirates opened fire on abducted crew members as they came under pressure and began retreating from the vessel.
Ansar Burney Trust Director Advocate Qurat-ul-Ain told a private media outlet that the crew members were killed and injured at a considerable distance from the shore. She said that the pirates also damaged the steering system of the Honour 25 while fleeing the vessel, leaving it inoperable.
The tanker is now being towed towards the shore by a Somali naval vessel, a process that will take at least two days, according to Qurat-ul-Ain.
The Palau-flagged oil tanker was hijacked off the coast of Puntland on April 21 with 19 crew members on board, including 10 Pakistanis. Before its recovery, the crew had remained in captivity for more than five months, with families appealing for action as negotiations over their release continued.
