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‘They told us they would kill us all one by one’

Captain Noor Mohammed and his crew of 11 were allowed to set sail from a location on the Somali coast between the port of El Mann and Obyo on 1 May. Captain Mohammed said he was not aware a ransom was paid, but was simply told to leave as soon as possible.

Relating their ordeal, Captain Mohammed said, "We were on our way to Kismayu after unloading part of a general cargo in El Maan port. At about 3pm, a 15-member gang of pirates came up to the ship in speedboats and fired at us. We had no idea what was happening. They used grappling hooks and ladders between the vessels and boarded the Al Taj. Captain Mohammed said the men were armed with pistols and other guns. One crewmember Jumma Osman was killed and two others were badly beaten, kicked and punched during the attack.

"They asked us for dollars but we told them that we only had dirhams," said Captain Mohammed. "They took the Dh4,000 that we had and all of our belongings including our mobile phones. And then they asked for dollars again. When we told them again that we did not have any dollars they threatened to kill us one by one. When we repeated that we did not have any dollars they killed Jumma."

"Describing the attackers the Captain said they were tall and muscular, with one distinct leader in the group. He added that the pirates seemed to be drunk much of the time and seemed to be taking 'some kind of drug.'

In addition to the crews' belongings and money, the pirates also removed some of the cargo. The remaining cargo is still in the ship's hold.

Captain Mohammed was also able to reveal new details of the fate of the Lin 1, also hijacked by Somali pirates and missing since March 29.

Captain Mohammed said the Lin 1 was anchored close by the Al Taj together with a Korean fishing boat. He could not provide any information on another hijacked vessel, the Julia 54.

During the Al Taj's voyage back to Dubai, she was boarded by crew from a French coalition ship, who provided them with food and medical assistance.

Meanwhile, Dubai Customs took the vessel into custody when it arrived at the port. According to Narandra Shial, owner of MV Al Taj, he was summoned by Dubai Police for collecting information about the hijacking.

Freed crew tell of their ordeal

By our staff reporters

DUBAI — "We never thought we would escape from the pirates. They were threatening us all the time by putting the gun on our neck and asking for dollars. When they killed our colleague we thought the same fate was waiting for us," said crew members of MV Al Taj, the UAE-flagged ship hijacked by Somali pirates.

Speaking to Khaleej Times after their vessel docked safely at Hamriyah port yesterday, shocked crew members vowed never to sail to Somalia again. "When the pirates left us they threatened to kill us if we ever sailed again to the area in the future. We never thought we will be alive," said one of the crew.

“When they started firing at our vessel on the afternoon of April 27 we did not understand what was happening. About 15 pirates, all tall and big, climbed on to the vessel with ladder. They started to beat us and put guns on our neck. They just wanted dollars. They killed Juma Osman and later buried his body in the sea. Then they told us they will kill us one by one."

"For two days they did not given us any food. Later they allowed us to cook inside the vessel," the crew narrated, saying, it was difficult to cook while the pirates stood around them all the time with their guns.

"They had a leader who was giving instructions to the others. They kept beating us at regular intervals and asking us for dollars," one crewman added.

"When we reached a village between El Maan port and Obyo we saw two other ships hijacked by the same group. But we never had the opportunity to see the crew of the two ships."

"When the pirates informed us that they planned to release us soon, we could not believe our ears, they said, still unable to figure out why the pirates had changed their minds and decided to release us."

"On the way back to the UAE the sea was rough and took us 12 days to make our way back to Dubai. We did not have any food stock left with us. Two of our colleagues were sick because they had been beaten up badly. When we reached the Oman coast a French ship provided us with some food and medical assistance. The injured have recovered. Thanks to God for having saved us from the trouble."

• UAE