Somali Pirates have released the hijacked bunker tanker Aris 13 four days after the ship was taken.

EU Navfor confirmed on Thursday the pirates had left the tanker and that the vessel was on her way to a safe port in Northern Somalia.

The crew of eight were reported to be safe and EU Navfor said the master of the vessel confirmed there had been no injuries during the four day ordeal.

The release of the tanker came after an exchange of fire between the pirates and the Puntland Maritime Police.

“It is understood that members of the Puntland Maritime Police Force assisted with the ship’s release and are currently on board,” EU Navfor said.

According to a report by Reuters one of the pirates said no ransom was paid for the release of the vessel.

The Aris 13 was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden of 13 March. The first successful hijacking since May 2012 by Somali pirates has raised fears about a new surge in piracy in the region. </s> NAIROBI, March 15 (Reuters) - Pirates off the coast of Somalia, who hijacked an oil tanker with eight Sri Lankan crew on board, are demanding a ransom for the release of the vessel, the EU Naval Force said.

The pirates seized the Comoros-flagged Aris 13 tanker on Monday, the first such hijacking in the region since 2012, and took it to the port of Alula in the semi-autonomous northern region of Puntland.

"The EU Naval Force ... has received positive confirmation from the master of ... Aris 13, that his ship and crew are currently being held captive by a number of suspected armed pirates in an anchorage off the north coast of Puntland, close to Alula," the force said in a statement late on Tuesday.

EU Navfor said as soon as it received an alert on the ship's seizure, it sent patrol aircraft from its Djibouti base to try to make radio contact and late on Tuesday its headquarters in London managed to contact the vessel's master by phone.

"The master confirmed that armed men were on board his ship and they were demanding a ransom for the ship´s release. The EU Naval Force has now passed the information regarding the incident to the ship´s owners," EU Navfor said.

It gave no details on the size of the ransom.

The 1,800 deadweight tonne tanker is owned by Armi Shipping, a company registered in Panama, and managed by Aurora Ship Management in the United Arab Emirates, according to the French transport ministry's Equasis shipping data website.

Experts said ship owners were becoming lax after a long period of calm, and that the vessel was an easy target because it was low, slow and close to the coast.

Aid group Oceans Beyond Piracy said in a statement late on Tuesday the ship was carrying gas and fuel and was not registered with the Maritime Security Center for the Horn of Africa, which registers and tracks vessels in the region.

The group said the Aris 13 was preparing to go through a route known as the Socotra Gap, between Somalia and Socotra Island which vessels often use, regardless of the piracy risks, to save time and cost.

"This attack reinforces the need for vessels to follow shipping industry Best Management Practices (BMP) within the BMP specified High Risk Area," Oceans Beyond Piracy said.

There was no immediate comment from the ship's owners and managers.

In their prime in 2011, Somali pirates launched 237 attacks off Somalia's coast, data from the International Maritime Bureau showed, and held hundreds of hostages.

That year, Oceans Beyond Piracy estimated the global cost of piracy at about $7 billion. The shipping industry bore roughly 80 percent of those costs, the group's analysis shows.

However, attacks fell off sharply after ship owners tightened security and vessels stayed further away from the Somali coast. (Reporting by George Obulutsa and Katharine Houreld; Editing by Louise Ireland) </s> NAIROBI — Pirates off the coast of Somalia, who hijacked an oil tanker with eight Sri Lankan crew on board, are demanding a ransom for the release of the vessel, the EU Naval Force said.

The pirates seized the Comoros-flagged Aris 13 tanker on Monday, the first such hijacking in the region since 2012, and took it to the port of Alula in the semi-autonomous northern region of Puntland.

“The EU Naval Force … has received positive confirmation from the master of … Aris 13, that his ship and crew are currently being held captive by a number of suspected armed pirates in an anchorage off the north coast of Puntland, close to Alula,” the force said in a statement late on Tuesday.

EU Navfor said as soon as it received an alert on the ship’s seizure, it sent patrol aircraft from its Djibouti base to try to make radio contact and late on Tuesday its headquarters in London managed to contact the vessel’s master by phone.

“The master confirmed that armed men were on board his ship and they were demanding a ransom for the ship’s release. The EU Naval Force has now passed the information regarding the incident to the ship’s owners,” EU Navfor said.

It gave no details on the size of the ransom.

The 1,800 deadweight tonne tanker is owned by Armi Shipping, a company registered in Panama, and managed by Aurora Ship Management in the United Arab Emirates, according to the French transport ministry’s Equasis shipping data website.

Experts said ship owners were becoming lax after a long period of calm and that the vessel was an easy target because it was low, slow and close to the coast.

Aid group Oceans Beyond Piracy said in a statement late on Tuesday the ship was carrying gas and fuel and was not registered with the Maritime Security Center for the Horn of Africa, which registers and tracks vessels in the region.

The group said the Aris 13 was preparing to go through a route known as the Socotra Gap, between Somalia and Socotra Island which vessels often use, regardless of the piracy risks, to save time and cost.

“This attack reinforces the need for vessels to follow shipping industry Best Management Practices within the BMP specified High Risk Area,” Oceans Beyond Piracy said.

There was no immediate comment from the ship’s owners and managers.

In their prime in 2011, Somali pirates launched 237 attacks off Somalia’s coast, data from the International Maritime Bureau showed, and held hundreds of hostages.

That year, Oceans Beyond Piracy estimated the global cost of piracy at about $7 billion. The shipping industry bore roughly 80 percent of those costs, the group’s analysis shows.

However, attacks fell off sharply after ship owners tightened security and vessels stayed further away from the Somali coast. </s> Somali pirates who seized a Comoros-flagged oil tanker have released the ship without conditions, officials say.

Security official Ahmed Mohamed told reporters that the pirates have disembarked the ship, which is now heading to Bossaso port, the region's commercial hub.

He said the release occurred after negotiations by local elders and local officials with the pirates, who seized the tanker on Monday.

Naval forces and the pirates clashed earlier on Thursday.

The hijacking of the Comoros-flagged tanker Aris 13 was the first such seizure of a large commercial vessel off Somalia since 2012. </s> MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Armed men are demanding a ransom for the release of an oil tanker they have seized off the coast of Somalia and the crew is being held captive, the European Union anti-piracy operation in the region announced late Tuesday.

An EU Naval Force statement said the operation had finally made contact with the ship’s master, who confirmed that armed men were aboard the Comoros-flagged tanker Aris 13.

The Aris 13, a Comoros-flagged oil tanker belonging to a Greek company, disappeared off the coast of the east African nation on Monday, according to CNN

It was not clear who owned the ship or where it was flagged. Oceans Beyond Piracy said it was owned by the United Arab Emirates and Sri Lankan-flagged, but the Middle East-based official said it was Greek-owned and Comoros-flagged, Guardian reported.

A U.N. shipping database shows the Aris 13 is owned by Armi Shipping SA, whose address is listed in care of Aurora Ship Management FZE, a company based in the United Arab Emirates. Calls and emails to Aurora went unanswered.

Australian government records from 2014 list the ship’s owner as Flair Shipping Trading FZE in the UAE. An address listed for Flair Shipping in Dubai was for a company called Flair Oil Trading DMCC. A woman there told an AP reporter the firm wasn’t connected to the ship and directed him to another office.

When no one answered there, the reporter returned to find Argyrios Karagiannis, the managing director of Flair Shipping, entering the first office. “We will not be releasing any information,” Karagiannis said before shutting the door.

Monday’s hijacking was the first such seizure of a large commercial vessel off Somalia since 2012. It came as a surprise to the global shipping industry as patrols by the navies of NATO countries, as well as China, India and Iran, had suppressed Somali pirate hijackings for several years.

However, the United Nations warned in October that the situation was fragile and that Somali pirates “possess the intent and capability to resume attacks.” One expert said some in the region had let down their guard as the situation calmed. NATO ended its anti-piracy mission off Somalia in December.

A Somali pirate who said he was in touch with the armed men aboard the tanker said the amount of ransom to demand had not yet been decided.

Bile Hussein told The Associated Press that the armed men have locked most of the crew in one room and cut off communication lines. “Their main concern now is a possible rescue attempt, so that’s why all communications were cut off in the afternoon,” he said.

The Aris 13, manned by eight Sri Lankan sailors, was carrying fuel from Djibouti to Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, when it was approached by men in two skiffs, said John Steed, the director of Oceans Beyond Piracy. The EU statement said the ship’s master issued a mayday alert.

An official in Somalia’s semiautonomous state of Puntland said over two dozen men boarded the ship off the country’s northern coast, an area known to be used by weapons smugglers and members of the al-Qaida-linked extremist group al-Shabab. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to journalists.

The ship was anchored Tuesday off the town of Alula, said Salad Nur, a local elder. “The ship is on the coast now and more armed men boarded the ship,” he told the AP by phone.

The EU Naval Force said it had passed the information from its contact with the ship’s master to the oil tanker’s owners and an investigation was underway.

Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement it was in touch with shipping agents and officials abroad for more information to help ensure the crew’s “safety and welfare.”

The incident involving the Aris 13 represents the first commercial pirate attack off Somalia since 2012, Steed of Oceans Beyond Piracy said.

“The pirates never went away, they were just doing other forms of crime and if any of the measures reduce (which they have, or ships take risks) the pirates are poised to exploit the weakness,” he said in an email.

Somali pirates usually hijack ships and crew for ransom. They don’t normally kill hostages unless they come under attack.

Piracy off Somalia’s coast was once a serious threat to the global shipping industry. It has lessened in recent years after an international effort to patrol near the country, whose weak central government has been trying to assert itself after a quarter-century of conflict. In that time, concerns about piracy off Africa’s coast have largely shifted to the Gulf of Guinea.

But frustrations have been rising among local fishermen, including former pirates, at what they say are foreign fishermen illegally fishing in local waters.

Nur, the local elder, told the AP that young fishermen including former pirates have hijacked the ship.

“They have been sailing through the ocean in search for a foreign ship to hijack since yesterday morning and found this ship and boarded it,” he said. “Foreign fishermen destroyed their livelihoods and deprived them of proper fishing.” </s> Somali pirates that hijacked the bunker tanker Aris 13 in the Gulf of Aden on Tuesday have demand a ransom according to EU Naval Force (EU Navfor).

EU Navfor said it had received confirmation from the Master of the Comoros-flagged tanker that the vessel and its crew were being held captive by armed pirates in an anchorage off the North Coast of Puntland.

“The master confirmed that armed men were on board his ship and they were demanding a ransom for the ship’s release. The EU Naval Force has now passed the information regarding the incident to the ship’s owners,” EU Navfor said.

According to the naval force the tanker was attacked shortly after a mayday from the master that two skiffs were closing in on the vessel.

“Upon receipt of the mayday alert, an EU Naval Force maritime patrol aircraft was launched from its base in Djibouti to overfly the tanker and make radio contact with the ship’s master. Despite hailing the ship several times, no contact was made and the situation on board remained unclear until late this (Tuesday) afternoon, when the EU Naval Force operational HQ in London was able to make telephone contact with the ship’s master.”

The first successful hijacking by Somali pirates of a merchant vessel since 2012 will spark concerns of a resurgence of piracy in the region which hit crisis proportions in 2009 – 2011. The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) warned in its 2016 annual report: “The IMB PRC (Piracy Reporting Centre) believes that a single successful hijacking of a merchant vessel, will rekindle the Somali’ pirates desire to resume their piracy efforts. </s> Somali pirates who took control of an oil tanker on Monday (13 March) have reportedly released the ship and its crew without ransom, officials said.

The release came several hours after a gunfight on Thursday between naval forces and the pirates, followed by negotiations between the marines and the pirates.

The director general of maritime police force for Somalia's semi autonomous region of Puntland, Abdirahman Mohamud Hassan said: "There has been discussion going on after the gunfight of this afternoon ... We pulled our forces back and so the pirates went away."

The tanker was captured when it was making its way from Djibouti to Mogadishu with eight Sri Lankan crew members.

A pirate said they chose to release the ship without any ransom payment, Reuters reported.

"After we came to know that the Somali traders hired the oil tanker, we released it without a ransom," a pirate named Abdullahi was quoted by Reuters as saying. Pirates are reportedly hesitant about annoying powerful businessmen in Somalia.

According to the BBC, four people were injured in the exchange of fire on Thursday. Officials in Puntland sent local forces to assist in rescue efforts of the hostages on board the vessel.

The ship, owned by the United Arab Emirates, was carrying oil. The release will be viewed as a success for the government of Puntland and its counter-piracy force.

It is the first attempt by pirates to hijack a ship off Somalia's coast since 2012. According to International Maritime Bureau statistics, at the peak of piracy in 2011, the pirates waged at least 237 attacks off the coast of Somalia and held hundreds as hostages.

After naval forces stepped up patrols and put safety measures in place, the number of attacks has reportedly decreased. </s> Armed men are demanding a ransom for the release of an oil tanker seized off the coast of Somalia and the crew is being held captive, the EU anti-piracy operation in the region said.

An EU Naval Force statement said the operation had finally made contact with the ship's master, who confirmed that armed men were aboard the Comoros-flagged tanker Aris 13.

Monday's hijacking was the first such seizure of a large commercial vessel off Somalia since 2012.

It came as a surprise to the global shipping industry as patrols by the navies of Nato countries, as well as China, India and Iran, had suppressed Somali pirate hijackings for several years.

However, the United Nations warned in October that the situation was fragile and that Somali pirates "possess the intent and capability to resume attacks".

One expert said some in the region had let down their guard as the situation calmed.

Nato ended its anti-piracy mission off Somalia in December.

A Somali pirate who said he was in touch with the armed men aboard the tanker said the amount of ransom to demand had not yet been decided.

Bile Hussein told The Associated Press that the armed men have locked most of the crew in one room and cut off communication lines.

"Their main concern now is a possible rescue attempt, so that's why all communications were cut off in the afternoon," he said.

The Aris 13, manned by eight Sri Lankan sailors, was carrying fuel from Djibouti to Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, when it was approached by men in two skiffs, said John Steed, the director of Oceans Beyond Piracy.

The EU statement said the ship's master issued a mayday alert.

An official in Somalia's semi-autonomous state of Puntland said over two dozen men boarded the ship off the country's northern coast, an area known to be used by weapons smugglers and members of the al Qaida-linked extremist group al-Shabab.

The ship was anchored off the town of Alula, said Salad Nur, a local elder.

"The ship is on the coast now and more armed men boarded the ship," he told the AP by phone.

The EU Naval Force said it had passed the information from its contact with the ship's master to the oil tanker's owners and an investigation was under way.

Sri Lanka's foreign ministry said in a statement it was in touch with shipping agents and officials abroad for more information to help ensure the crew's "safety and welfare".

A UN shipping database shows the Aris 13 is owned by Armi Shipping SA, whose address is listed in care of Aurora Ship Management FZE, a company based in the United Arab Emirates.

Calls and emails to Aurora went unanswered.

Australian government records from 2014 list the ship's owner as Flair Shipping Trading FZE in the UAE.

An address listed for Flair Shipping in Dubai was for a company called Flair Oil Trading DMCC.

A woman there told an AP reporter the firm was not connected to the ship and directed him to another office.

When no one answered there, the reporter returned to find Argyrios Karagiannis, the managing director of Flair Shipping, entering the first office.

"We will not be releasing any information," Mr Karagiannis said before shutting the door.

The incident involving the Aris 13 represents the first commercial pirate attack off Somalia since 2012, Mr Steed of Oceans Beyond Piracy said.

"The pirates never went away, they were just doing other forms of crime and if any of the measures reduce (which they have, or ships take risks) the pirates are poised to exploit the weakness," he said in an email.

Somali pirates usually hijack ships and crew for ransom.

They do not normally kill hostages unless they come under attack.

Piracy off Somalia's coast was once a serious threat to the global shipping industry.

It has lessened in recent years after an international effort to patrol near the country, whose weak central government has been trying to assert itself after a quarter-century of conflict.

In that time, concerns about piracy off Africa's coast have largely shifted to the Gulf of Guinea.

But frustrations have been rising among local fishermen, including former pirates, at what they say are foreign fishermen illegally fishing in local waters.

Nur, the local elder, told AP that young fishermen including former pirates have hijacked the ship.

"They have been sailing through the ocean in search for a foreign ship to hijack since yesterday morning and found this ship and boarded it," he said on Tuesday.

"Foreign fishermen destroyed their livelihoods and deprived them of proper fishing." </s> An armed Somali pirate walks along the coastline near Hobyo in 2010 (AFP Photo/MOHAMED DAHIR)

Mogadishu (AFP) - Somali pirates on Thursday handed over an oil tanker and eight Sri Lankan hostages captured just days ago, the Oceans Beyond Piracy NGO told AFP, bringing to a close the first such attack since 2012.

"The Puntland maritime police force freed the ship. They made (the pirates) an offer they couldn't refuse and the pirates have left," said John Steed, a former British army officer with the NGO who has spent years negotiating the release of piracy hostages in Somalia.

Earlier on Thursday the Puntland coastguard had threatened to use force if the talks to convince the pirates to release the vessel failed.

Armed attackers seized the Aris 13 on Monday as it made its way from Djibouti to Mogadishu, the first hijacking of a large merchant vessel by Somali pirates since 2012.

Steed said the pirates had left the Aris 13 ship, which was under control of the coast guard and on its way to the port city of Bossaso in the semi-autonomous Puntland region, on the northeastern tip of Somalia.

He was not able to provide more details on the conditions for the release of the vessel.

Abdirahman Mohamud Hassan, the director general of the Puntland maritime force, said earlier that a regional governor, who was not named, had been appointed to negotiate with the pirates.

The successful release came after a fierce firefight between the coast guard and armed men aboard a boat believed to be taking food and provisions to the hijacked tanker.

"Our forces were doing a normal routine patrolling around the area when they came under gunfire from these gunmen who were onboard a small skiff and they returned fire," said Hassan.

Steed said an unknown number of people had been injured in the exchange of gunfire.

At the time the tanker was taken it was forced to change course and head toward Puntland. The Aris 13 was about 18 kilometres off the Somali coast when it was attacked, according to Steed.

He said the vessel was not following the "best practices" put in place to avoid piracy, since it was taking a cost- and time-saving route too close to Somalia's coastline, was travelling too slowly and was without an armed escort.

Village elders in Alula where the hijacked vessel first docked, said the pirates had not made clear demands, but claimed to be driven by anger over illegal fishing.

"These are fishermen who are infuriated with the illegal fishing off their coasts. They desperately need to show their grievances by seizing the boat," said Abdiwahab Ahmed, an elder in Alula.

Somali pirates began staging waves of attacks in 2005, seriously disrupting a major international shipping route and costing the global economy billions of dollars.

At the peak of the piracy crisis in January 2011, 736 hostages and 32 boats were held.

Though anti-piracy measures ended attacks on commercial vessels, fishing boats have continued to face attacks.

Steed says the international community had taken significant steps to improve security, boosting naval forces in the area and requiring ships to take protection measures.

"Hundreds of pirates were arrested, others gave up, and we hadn't had an attack of a commercial ship for five years," he said.

"But the one thing that's not really been addressed is the real root cause of this, which is poverty and the lack of jobs on the ground. There's also a drought, so there's no food, no water."

Illegal fishing has long been used by Somali pirates as an excuse for attacks and Steed has in the past warned that the presence of foreign vessels emptying Somali waters could reverse the gains against piracy.

"The question wasn't really if an attack was going to happen, the question was when," said Steed.
The Somali pirates that hijacked the Aris 13, a United Arab Emirates-owned oil tanker, release it without condition.