presstv

A Chinese coal ship, with 25 sailors on board, hijacked two months ago off the coast of Somalia, has been freed.

The De Xin Hai was carrying about 76,000 tons of coal from South Africa to Mundra in India when it was seized in a daring attack by Somali pirates on October 19 some 700 miles east of the Horn of Africa.

Despite a previous report by the Reuters news agency that a ransom of $4 million was dropped by a helicopter on the deck of the ship on Sunday, Xinhua reported on Monday that it is not clear if the ransom was paid or the ship was retaken by force.

The report of the ransom was confirmed to Reuters by one of the pirates, named Hassan, on the De Xin Hai.

The De Xin Hai was the first Chinese vessel to be hijacked since China deployed a three-ship squadron to the Gulf of Aden last year, joining Britain, India, Iran, the US, France, and other countries in anti-piracy patrols.

In related news, Somali pirates set free an Indian fishing dhow, the Laxim Sagar, and its 10 crew members on Sunday after forcibly taking their money and other belongings. However, no ransom was taken. The dhow was hijacked on December 13.

Meanwhile, according to a Press TV correspondent, the Singapore-flagged container ship Kota Wajar, with 21 crew members, was also released off the coast of Somalia near the port of Haradere on Monday.

The Kota Wajar was seized on October 15 in the Indian Ocean some 300 nautical miles north of Seychelles. It was not clear if any ransom was paid.