Turkey takes initiatives for sailors seized off Nigeria

ANKARA

Initiatives are being taken to release 10 Turkish sailors who had been abducted off Nigeria, according to Turkey's Foreign Ministry on July 17.

“The ship which the pirates left has been taken to Tema Harbor (Ghana), and the necessary initiatives are taken with Nigerian and Ghanaian authorities for the release of our abducted citizens,” the ministry said in a statement.     

It recalled that a Turkish-flagged ship bound to Abidjan city of the Ivory Coast from the Port of Douala in Cameroon was attacked by pirates on July 13 evening off Nigeria.    

“As a result of the attack, some of the crew members, who are Turkish nationals, have been abducted by the pirates,” the ministry added.     

It also said that the issue has been followed closely by the ministry and related institutions.     

At least 10 Turkish sailors traveling aboard Paksoy-1 have been abducted off Nigerian waters.     

The ship is operated by Kadıoğlu Maritime and had 18 crew on board at the time it was attacked by pirates suspected to be from Nigeria's volatile delta region, according to a local official.     

Later in the day, Turkey's Accra ambassador Özlem Ergün Ulueren told Anadolu Agency that the Paksoy-1 had reached Ghana's Tema Harbor with eight crew members on July 15 afternoon.     

Ulueren added that the sailors are in good medical condition.