Just days after capturing an oil tanker near Somalia, a group of Somali pirates handed over the ship and the hostages without receiving a ransom. Hours before leaving the ship, the pirates opened fire at security forces from the Somali semi-autonomous state of Puntland. Eventually, the pirates pulled their ransom demands and decided to leave. The hijackers told authorities that they acted out of protest and only seized the ship to rebel against illegal fishing in the area. Somali pirates once attacked hundreds of ships per year, but international patrols on key routes helped bring the issue under control.

Source: Daily News Egypt March 17, 2017 00:22 UTC