A new video of Pakistani crew members being held hostage by pirates in Somalia has surfaced, with the captives appealing to Pakistan’s top leadership to take concrete steps for their release.
The Pakistani hostages have spent 109 days in captivity, while no assistance has yet reached them from the Pakistani government and negotiations with the pirates have reportedly not begun.
The crew of the vessel Owner 25, which was hijacked in the waters off Somalia, has been held hostage for around three and a half months.
The latest video has left the families of the Pakistani hostages deeply distressed. Several of the captives are reportedly in deteriorating health due to illness, while conditions aboard the vessel are said to be worsening.
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Facing increasingly difficult circumstances, the Pakistani hostages have made an emotional appeal to Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to take immediate steps to secure their release.
The oil tanker Honour 25, sailing under the Somali flag from Oman to Somalia, was hijacked by pirates on the 21st of April.
There were 17 crew members aboard, 10 of whom were Pakistani nationals. The families of the Pakistani hostages have continuously appealed to the government for the safe release of their loved ones.