The nine Indonesian citizens taken hostage by armed groups in Somalia were already moved to a safer area in Mudug province of the country, foreign ministry spokesman said.

"After a series of phone calls between the company and the captors, it was said that all the hostages were in a good health. They were all safe," Antara news agency Monday quoted spokesman for the foreign ministry, Desra Percaya, as saying.

The spokesman said he had met with the relatives (of the hostages) in Indonesia to inform them of the hostages-taking while seeking a negotiation for the release of the hostages.

The agent which had sent the nine Indonesians was PT Berjaya.

On April 11, Somalian Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi also took part in efforts for the release of the 25 crew members, including nine Indonesians, of a South Korean vessel.

The South Korean fishing vessel "Dong Won 628" was highjacked about 200 kms off the Somalian coast on April 4.

According to a report, the eight hijackers demanded a ransom of 400,000 U.S. dollars.

This was not the first such incident in Somalia. On August 15, 2005, around 14 Indonesian citizens employed by a Taiwanese ship owner were taken hostage in Somalia.

Source: Xinhua