20 Filipino seamen freed by pirates

About 20 Filipino seamen kidnapped by pirates in Somalia in March have been released and are on their way home, officials said Monday.

The men were freed Saturday, and it was not clear whether any ransom has been paid, said Roy Cimatu, the government’s special envoy to the Middle East.

The men were seized after their oil tanker, the United Arab Emirates-registered MT LIN1, offloaded its cargo at a southern Somali port on March 29, the Philippine Foreign Affairs Department said.