Four Pakistani crew members from hijacked MV Honour 25 to arrive in Karachi tomorrow

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Friday said that four of the 10 Pakistani crew members from the MV Honour 25 vessel that was hijacked off the coast of Somalia have been safely retrieved and are scheduled to arrive in Karachi tomorrow.

In a post on X, Dar said that the development followed “sustained efforts” by the Foreign Office and Pakistan’s Embassy in Djibouti. “Four of the ten Pakistani crew members (Mr Yasir Khan, Mr Aqeel Khan, Mr Amin bin Shams and Mr Usman Ghani) affected by the hijacking of MV Honour 25 off the coast of Somalia have been safely retrieved and are scheduled to arrive in Karachi tomorrow, 3 October, InshaAllah,” he said.

Dar said the mortal remains of three Pakistani crew members who died in the operation were also being repatriated.

“The mortal remains of the three Pakistani crew members (Late Rafi Ullah Khan, Late Syed Kashif Umer and Late Mahmood Ahmed Ansari) who tragically lost their lives are being repatriated to Pakistan, with all necessary legal and other formalities being fast-tracked to expedite the process in this regard,” he said.

“My heartfelt condolences go to the bereaved families, who are going through a deeply painful time,” he added.

Tweet by Ishaq Dar

Dar said three other Pakistani crew members — Imran Ali, Yasin Muhammad and Syed Yousuf Hussain — remained aboard the vessel along with the captain. “We are actively coordinating with our friendly countries to facilitate their safe extraction and earliest possible return to Pakistan, inshaAllah,” he said.

The foreign minister said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, “remains fully seized of the matter” and was continuously making efforts to ensure the return of all Pakistani nationals, including the bodies of those who died.

He added that the ministry would “continue extending all possible support to the affected families.”