Turkish sailors rescued after ship attack returning home

By Ahmet Emin Donmez

ANKARA (AA) - Three Turkish crew members, who survived the pirate attack on a Liberian-flagged ship, Mozart, have left for Turkey on Friday.

Turkey's embassy in capital Libreville on Twitter said the crew members -- Furkan Yaren, Ilhan Suha Tatligul and Bahadir Yesilalan -- were sent off to Turkey from Gabon.

Turkish Ambassador Nilufer Erdem Kaygisiz was also present at the airport and bade farewell to the crew members.

The survivors of the pirate attack are expected to arrive at Istanbul Airport at 0330 a.m. local time (0030GMT) on Saturday.

The three Turkish crew members in Gabon are in good condition, said the Turkish Embassy in Libreville.

In a pirate attack last week, 15 of the cargo ship's 19 crew members were abducted, while one, an Azerbaijani national, was killed.

Following the attack, Mozart anchored at the nearby Port-Gentil on Sunday, but with only three of its surviving crew members on board.

On Wednesday, an Istanbul-based firm which provides technical management services for the vessel, said all 15 crew members are in good health and uninjured.

"Boden Shipping communicated with the crew members of the container ship Mozart, which was hijacked off Sao Tome on Jan. 23, 2021," said a statement by the firm.​​​​​​​