The holy Eid-ul-Fitr is being celebrated today in the East African country of Somalia. The sailors offered Eid prayers in the hatch (iron lid on the cargo shell) of the Bangladeshi ship MV Abdullah while hostage on the coast of the country. With the permission of the bandits, they offered Eid prayers at around 12 noon Bangladesh time. Several sources close to the sailors confirmed the information.
The ship was hijacked by Somali pirates on March 12. As such, today was the 30th day of hostage-taking of sailors. The hostage ship is now one and a half nautical miles off the coast of Jefal in Somalia’s Gadhavjiran district.
According to a sailor’s family source, the sailors performed Eid prayers amid the fierce attacks of bandits. Later they took a picture. In the picture, the sailors are performing Eid prayers by spreading triplets on the ship’s hatch. Of the 23 sailors held hostage, 22 were seen in the film. The hostage is believed to have been taken by another sailor.
In the picture, most of the sailors are wearing pajama-punjabi and caps. The picture was taken from the coast facing the sea. The blue sea can be seen behind the sailors in the picture. The body, hook and grab of the crane used to lift and unload goods from the ship were seen on the hatch.
Related sources said that fresh water is supplied two days a week due to shortage of water on board. Bikera got a chance to bathe after two days today on the occasion of Eid. After the prayer, they eat a little.
The owner of the ship did not comment on the picture. When asked about the photo, Captain Anam Chowdhury, president of Bangladesh Merchant Marine Officers Association, an organization protecting the interests of seafarers, told Prothom Alo that the photo is of MV Abdullah ship. It also contains hostage sailors. By looking at the picture, it can be assumed that the agreement with the bandits is almost final. That is why the bandits gave sailors the opportunity to perform Eid prayers. It seems unlikely that the bandits would have given Eid prayers a chance if there had been no progress on reconciliation.
A sailor working on another ship told Prothom Alo that sailors take their clothes with them when they join the ship. Because sailors often have to celebrate Eid on the ship.
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