DHAKA: A hijacked Singaporean oil tanker carrying 21 sailors was released on Sunday a week after being seized by pirates in waters off Ghana in west Africa.

Seoul’s foreign ministry said, reports The Straits Times.

The 3,200-tonnes tanker, carrying a South Korean captain and chief engineer, was hijacked on July 26 off the southern coast of Ghana, the ministry said.

The vessel, which had loaded in the Pacific island nation of Kiribati, was also carrying 12 Chinese, one Singaporean and six Burmese, it said.

‘All sailors are unhurt and it appears that some of their fuel has been stolen,’ it said, adding the ship was released in waters off Nigeria.

BDST: 1647 HRS, AUG 03, 2014