The pirates who seized a Dutch freighter with a Russian and Filipino crew last week are threatening to kill them if any rescue attempt is made. The hijackers are demanding a ransom for the seamen, claiming the vessel was fishing in Somali waters.
Lars Walder, a spokesman for the ship owners has denied the claims, saying Amiya Scan is a cargo ship but not a fishing trawler. He also said that the crew is being well treated, given the circumstances, and that everybody is healthy. The freighter, sailing under the flag of Antigua and Barbuda, was on its way to Romania carrying an oil platform from Kenya, when it was hijacked in international waters in the Gulf of Aden on May 26.