Somali pirates freed a Nigerian tugboat captured around 10 months ago, putting an end to the longest such hijacking off the coast of Somalia.
The ship, owned by Nigerian ESL Integrated Services, and its 11-man Nigerian crew were captured in the Gulf of Aden on 4 August 2008, on its way back from Singapore where it had undergone repairs.
According to the Dutch defence ministry, the boat was freed at 6pm yesterday evening and is being escorted by the Dutch frigate De Zeven Provincien towards Yemen.
Concerning the Nigerian crew members, Dutch defence ministry spokesman Robin Middel said: ‘Because they were held for a long time, the state of their health has deteriorated.’
Foreign ships hijacked by Somali pirates have rarely been held longer than four or five months, but the Yenegoa Ocean had remained in limbo for months, with talks for its release seemingly at a standstill.
Negotiations intensified in recent weeks, notably with the involvement of a Somali advocacy organisation based in Minnesota and also the captain's family.
At last count 14 ships are still being held by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean, together with more than 200 seamen, almost a fourth of them Filipinos.
They had captured 49 ships in total last year.
Early April this year saw an unprecedented flurry of hijackings but less favourable weather conditions in recent weeks have led to a relative lull in pirate attacks.
The world's naval powers have deployed dozens of warships to the region over the past year, in a declared attempt to curb attacks by pirates threatening one of the world's busiest maritime trade routes.
