Eight Egyptian sailors who had been kidnapped aboard the M/T Eureka off the coast of Somalia’s Puntland region have been released, according to a statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday.
The ministry said the release followed directives from President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and continuous follow-up by Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, who held high-level contacts with Somali and Yemeni officials.
The sailors had been held since May 2, when they were kidnapped aboard the vessel off the coast of Puntland.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Nader Zaki said Abdelatty instructed the Egyptian Embassy in Mogadishu to receive the sailors, check on their condition and facilitate their return to Egypt on the earliest available flight.
The ministry’s Consular Sector had previously met with the families of the kidnapped sailors to update them on efforts to secure their release.
During the period of their captivity, the Egyptian Embassy in Mogadishu also facilitated communication between the sailors and their families to reassure them about their condition.
