August 2009 Egyptian hostage escape

On August 13, 2009, Egyptians captured by Somali pirates and held hostage for ransom attacked their captors, using whatever was at their disposal before seizing weapons from the pirates. They managed to overpower their captors and reach Aden, Yemen, in what was described a "daring and dramatic escape."

Somalia has not had an effective government since 1991, when a dictatorship was overthrown, plunging the country into chaos. The ensuing power vacuum, and the lack of authority in the country has resulted in a surge in piracy, which occurs along Somalia's 1,900-mile coastline, the Gulf of Aden, and the Indian Ocean as well, areas through which run some of the world's busiest shipping lines.

The Egyptians, fishermen working for a company called Mashreq Marine Product, were captured with their two fishing vessels, the Mumtaz 1 and Samara Ahmed, by Somali pirates in April 2009. Both vessels had permits to fish off Somali shores. Reports estimate two dozen to forty fishermen being captured by the Somali pirates. The latest and apparently most accurate figure, from Al-Ahram, states 33 fishermen were taken hostage. Mohamed Alnahdi, executive manager of Mashreq, negotiated with the pirates for over a month, but failed to secure the fishermen's release after the pirates, originally demanding 800,000 to $1.5 million, rejected a ransom of $200,000.

The fishermen rose against their captors on Thursday, August 13. They were being held on their vessels in Las Qorey, a pirate stronghold located on the coast in northern Somaliland. Despite being held on both ships and thus separated, the fisherman coordinated their actions against the captors, using the tools and machetes they were able to get hold of against the pirates, before seizing their guns and using it against them. At least two pirates were killed and an unknown number wounded. There were no casualties among the Egyptians, who took control of the Momtaz 1 and Samara Ahmed and set sail for Aden, bringing along four prisoners. Local residents saw the boats leaving Las Qorey.

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Wikipedia