Twenty-six Egyptian fishermen arrested in Djiboutian waters

Twenty-six Egyptian fishermen arrested in Djiboutian waters

Twenty six Egyptian fishermen were detained by Djiboutian authorities for illegally entering Djiboutian waters and fishing there, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said on Saturday.

The Egyptian Embassy in Djibouti is communicating with Djiboutian authorities to release the fishermen.

Khaled Taha, the Egyptian ambassador to Djibouti, said the Djiboutian authorities are being cooperative due to the brotherly relations between Egypt and Djibouti.

“The situation is complicated,” Taha said. “There were three Somalis on board the boat, one of whom held a machine gun. Also, 60 tons of fish caught over a period of three weeks were found on board. What’s more, the crew selected the high priced types of fish and threw the rest back into the water after they had died.”

Taha called on Egyptians to respect laws in neighboring countries. He added that several anti-piracy patrol boats in the area detected the presence of the Egyptian fishers.

Translated from the Arabic Edition