“The ship, currently docked at Salalah port in Oman was relieved of its crew who want to join their respective families following the horrible experience,” said Sri Lankan Consul General Sabarullah Khan.

He added that a new crew from Sri Lanka had been transferred to a ship on an arrangement made by the Jeddah-based International Bunkering Company (IBCO), which owns the tanker. The vessel is expected to leave Omani waters before dawn on Thursday and is expected to reach Jeddah next week.

Khan said two members of the kidnapped Sri Lankan crew opted to continue their voyage. “These two sailors claim that their contract ends only when the released vessel reaches the Jeddah Islamic Port.” According to the diplomat, the sailors were unhurt and they might require some time to recover from the trauma when they reach Colombo on Thursday morning.

Confirming the departure of the sailors from Muscat, official sources from the Sri Lankan Embassy in Oman told Arab News over the phone that the sailors were given their dues and were happy to leave for home to see their families following an ordeal.

Al-Nisr Al-Saudi, which arrived at Salalah port on Dec. 14, was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden on March 1, with a 14-member crew aboard, which included 13 Sri Lankans headed by a Greek captain. The 13 Sri Lankan seamen had joined the ship in Japan in January this year through an agent in Colombo. The bunker barge, owned by International Bunkering Company Ltd. (IBCO), was on its way from Japan to Jeddah when it was hijacked.