KARACHI: Somali maritime police said on Tuesday that they had recovered an oil tanker, the MT Honour 25, which was hijacked by armed pirates off the coast of Puntland on April 21.

The Honour 25 a Palauflagged oil tanker had 19 crew members on board, including 10 Pakistanis.

`The naval and ground units of the Puntland Maritime Police Force conducted a planned operation in the Dharin-Bar area ofBandar Beyla district,` the maritime police said in a statement.

Citing Puntland`s state television, Reuters reported that the pirates holding the vessel had been detained and would be brought to court.

There was no official word from the Foreign Office, but reports attributed to the seamen on board the tanker suggested that at least five men including three Pakistanis had died, while four men were injured during the operation.

Apart from the Pakistanis, the vessel`s crew also included seven Indonesians, an Indian and a Sri Lankan.

Ayesha Ameen, the wife of a fitter on the ship, told Dawn between sobs that there were reports of casualties among Pakistanis on the ship.

She said that they were not able to confirm the names of the deceased yet, but her husband, Ameen BinShams, was reportedly among the injured.

`We don`t know how bad the injuries are,` she said.

`We are trying to establish contact with the ship`s captain on the numbers that we have. But our calls are not being answered.

`As far as we know, the bodies are still on the ship, as are the injured. There is no one to tell us if they will be moved. We are going mad here,` she added.

Since its hijack, the crew had made several emotional videos and audio appeals, reporting that they had run out of water, food and medicine.

Meanwhile, their families had launched an international appeal, calling on foreign governments, the UN and the International Maritime Organisation to take coordinated action to help secure the release of their loved ones.