Two Azerbaijani members of wrecked ship's crew in Tunisia released

Citizens of Azerbaijan, members of the crew of a ship that crashed near the Tunisian city of Gabes, have been rescued.

The announcement came online by the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry on August 23, Caliber.Az reports.

According to the ministry, two Azerbaijani citizens left Tunisia.

“As it is known, on April 16, 2022, near the city of Gabes, Tunisian Republic, due to unfavourable weather conditions, the ‘Xelo’ vessel, sailing under the flag of Equatorial Guinea, crashed. Two of the seven members of the ship's crew - Safarov Fadail Ahmad oglu and Panahli Ali Mirza oglu are citizens of the Republic of Azerbaijan,” the ministry said.

According to the ministry, members of the ship's crew have since been detained by law enforcement agencies of the Republic of Tunisia to investigate the incident and give a legal assessment.

In this matter, the country’s Foreign Ministry addressed official appeals to the relevant state bodies of Tunisia to provide the necessary consular assistance to the Azerbaijani citizens. Along with this, meetings were held in the relevant state structures of Tunisia, and the detained members of the ship's crew were also visited.

The ministry also contacted the company - the owner of the vessel and hold negotiations on the issue of providing legal and financial assistance to citizens in difficult situations.

“At the last court hearing, held on August 10, 2022, in the Gabes court, a decision was made to release the crew members of the wrecked ship. On August 21, 2022, our citizens left the territory of the Republic of Tunisia. The government of the Republic of Azerbaijan will continue to take the necessary measures to protect the rights and freedoms of its citizens, wherever they are, based on national legislation and international treaties to which our country is a party,” the message says.