Indian sailors freed from Somali pirates on way home

MOGADISHU, Somalia – A Somali official says 10 Indian sailors rescued from pirates have left Somalia’s waters under the escort of an Indian navy vessel.

Abdullahi Ahmed Ali, the mayor of Hobyo town, says the crew was heading back to India on Thursday.

Eight crew members were rescued on Wednesday by regional forces that surrounded a village near Hobyo. The other two members were rescued on Tuesday.

Recent weeks have seen a resurgence of piracy off Somalia’s coast after five years of inactivity. The piracy was once a serious threat to the global shipping industry but lessened in recent years after an international effort to patrol off the coast.

Some Somali fishermen, including former pirates, say foreign ships illegally fishing in local waters are forcing them to return to piracy to make money.