Friday, December 17, 2010
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Meherul Karim, general manager of Brave Royal Shipping Management Limited -- the company that owns the seized ship, said on Friday they had conversations several times over phone with the pirates between Thursday afternoon and Friday afternoon.
"We're trying to ensure the safest and quickest return for the crew," Meherul told bdnews24.com.
He, however, declined to comment on the demand for ransom or negotiations.
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"For the sake of the crew's safety, we won't discuss now the demand or the amount." Meherul said they were keeping the government up-to-date about every step being taken.
Somali pirates seized the ship — MV Jahan Moni — on Dec 5 around 3:45pm in the Arabian Sea, 300 nautical miles off Cochin port on the coast of India. Twenty-five Bangladeshi sailors and wife of one are on board.
However, the owner has coninued to deny any demand for ransom from the pirates. But, families of the hijacked ship's crew said the pirates had asked for $ nine million in ransom.
Source: bdnews24