Hostage sailor Joy's family demands urgent steps to free all crew members

The family of Joy Mahmud, Ordinary Seaman, who is among 23 crew members of a Bangladeshi cargo vessel, MV Abdullah – hijacked by a group of Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean on Tuesday (12 March) – is counting every moment in anxiety.

Joy, hailing from Salinagar village in Bagatipara upazila of Natore district, told his cousin Maruf over the phone about his fate after the Somali pirates took them as hostages.

Maruf said Joy asked him not to inform his parents about the incident but they came to know about it through public representatives and media.

Ziaur Rahman and Abida Begum, Joy's parents, have not slept since hearing about the captivity of their only son.

They want the government and the ship authorities to take immediate action to rescue everyone on board, including their son.

Joy joined the ship as Ordinary Seaman on 29 November last year.

Among the 23 crew members, 11 hailed from Chattogram alone, two are from Noakhali and one each from Natore, Naogaon, Feni, Faridpur, Lakshmipur, Barishal, Netrakona, Sirajganj, Tangail and Khulna.

Earlier on Tuesday, the ship, carrying coal from Mozambique's Maputo port to Al Hamriyah Port in the UAE, was attacked around noon.

MV Abdullah is owned by SR Shipping Lines – a sister company of Chattogram-based Kabir Steel and Rerolling Mill (KSRM) Group. All crew members are being held hostage by the pirates, said KSRM's media adviser Mizanul Islam.

The crew members are: Captain Mohammad Abdur Rashid, Chief Officer Mohammad Atikullah Khan, Second Officer Mazharul Islam Chowdhury, Third Officer Tarequl Islam, Deck Cadet Sabbir Hossain, Chief Engineer ASM Saiduzzaman, Second Officer Toufiqul Islam, Third Engineer Rokon Uddin, Fourth Engineer Tanvir Ahmed, Engine Cadet Ayub Khan, electrician Ibrahim Khalil, seaman Md Anwarul Haque, seaman Md Asifur Rahman, seaman Sazzad Hossain, seaman Joy Mahmud, seaman Nazmul Haque, seaman Ainul Haque, oiler Mohamamd Shamsuddin, Ali Hossain, fireman Mosharraf Hossain Shakil, chief cook Shafiqul Islam, general steward Nur Uddin, and fitter Saleh Ahmed.

KSRM owns 23 ships – all operating on international routes. In 2010, one of the ships, 'MV Zahan Moni', was hijacked and was later released by Somali pirates after providing ransom.