The 23 Bangladeshi seafarers on board the MV Abdullah are reported unharmed after their vessel was seized by pirates in the Indian Ocean on March 12. The ship's owner, SR Shipping, says it is trying to establish contact with the hijackers. — Focus Bangla Chattogram, Mar 13 (UNB): Eleven out of the 23 crew members of a Bangladeshi cargo vessel, MV Abdullah, that was hijacked by a group of Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean, are residents of Chattogram.
Earlier on Tuesday, the ship, carrying coal from Mozambique's Maputo port to Al Hamriyah Port in the UAE, was attacked around noon.
MV Abdullah is owned by SR Shipping Lines - a sister company of Chattogram-based Kabir Steel and Rerolling Mill (KSRM) Group. All crew members are being held hostage by the pirates, said KSRM's media adviser Mizanul Islam.
The crew members are: Captain Mohammad Abdur Rashid, Chief Officer Mohammad Atikullah Khan, Second Officer Mazharul Islam Chowdhury, Third Officer Tarequl Islam, Deck Cadet Sabbir Hossain, Chief Engineer ASM Saiduzzaman, Second Officer Toufiqul Islam, Third Engineer Rokon Uddin, Fourth Engineer Tanvir Ahmed, Engine Cadet Ayub Khan, electrician Ibrahim Khalil, seaman Md Anwarul Haque, seaman Md Asifur Rahman, seaman Sazzad Hossain, seaman Joy Mahmud, seaman Nazmul Haque, seaman Ainul Haque, oiler Mohamamd Shamsuddin, Ali Hossain, fireman Mosharraf Hossain Shakil, chief cook Shafiqul Islam, general steward Nur Uddin, and fitter Saleh Ahmed.
KSRM owns 23 ships - all operating on international routes.
In 2010, one of the ships, 'MV Zahan Moni', was hijacked and was later released by Somali pirates after providing ransom.
Another report from Natore adds: Joy, hailing from Salinagar village in Bagatipara upazila of Natore district, informed of his fate to his cousin Maruf over the phone after the Somali pirates took them as hostages.
Maruf said Joy asked him not to inform his parents about the incident but they came to know about it through public representatives and media.
Ziaur Rahman and Abida Begum, Joy's parents, have not slept since hearing about the captivity of their only son.
They want the government and the ship authorities to take immediate action to rescue everyone on board, including their son.
Joy joined the ship as Ordinary Seaman on November 29 last year.
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