Indonesian Crew Kidnapped By Somali Pirates in 2012 Ready to Return
Jakarta. Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi has confirmed four Indonesian nationals kidnapped by Somali pirates in 2012 have been released and are currently undergoing medical examination in Nairobi, before returning home.
Four Indonesian crew members were freed Sunday afternoon after being taken hostage in Somalia in March 2012, Retno said at the Foreign Ministry office in Jakarta on Monday (24/10). They have been identified as Sudirman, Supardi, Adi Manurung and Elson and all four worked on the Taiwanese-owned Oman-operated ship Naham 3.
The four were among 26 hostages released Sunday, she added.
The Indonesian Embassy in Nairobi and a team led by Lalu Muhammad Iqbal, director for citizen protection and legal aid at the Foreign Ministry, welcomed the released hostages at the Nairobi airport.
“The team arrived a day prior to the hostages’ arrival. Their condition is healthy. I have spoken with Sudirman yesterday evening at around 9.45 p.m.,” Retno said.
The Indonesian nationals will undergo health examinations for several days before being repatriated.
Another hostage, Nasirin of Cirebon, West Java, died from malaria while in captivity in 2014, Retno said.
Hostages from the Philippines, Cambodia, Taiwan, China and Vietnam were also freed.
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