Eleven Indonesians were among those on board a Malaysian tugboat that has been in the possession of Somali pirates since Tuesday, the Foreign Ministry announced Wednesday.
"We have no information on whether the pirates want a ransom or not. Usually they demand a ransom in the form of a ship," spokesperson Teuku Faizasyah was quoted by Antara news wire as saying.
Faizasyah said the Malaysian authorities had contacted the pirates and were told that all the ship's crew were taken care of.
"We will continue to work with all related parties in efforts to rescue our fellow countrymen," Teuku said.
Earlier, a Yemeni maritime source reported that the pirates had hijacked the Malaysian tugboat on Tuesday night, a few hours after it left Yemen heading to Malaysia.
The boat, owned by Mas Indra Shipping Malaysian Sendirian Bhd., was carrying an unspecified number of crew members. However, reports suggest the crew were mostly Malaysians. Source:Xinhua
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