Another slain seaman’s family seeks return of his remains

Karachi, Pakistan - Just weeks after the families of kidnapped sailors from the MT Honour 25 were granted closure, another Pakistani seafarer's family is urgently requesting the return of their loved one's remains. Muhammad Hammad Obaida, a third engineer on the Panama-flagged oil tanker, MT El Gaia, was tragically killed when the vessel came under attack off the coast of Oman on September 13th.

Sadly, his family - including his three-year-old son and pregnant wife - are still awaiting his return nearly a month later. The conflicting accounts of the incident suggest the tanker faced an attack while still at sea. Reuters reported that the vessel was eventually towed to an Omani port around five days later. While the US and Iranian authorities pointed fingers at each other, the bodies of two crew members - one Pakistani and one Indian - who perished in an engine room fire were only discovered days after the attack.

Hammad's family only learned of the tragedy on September 26th, through one of his colleagues. Hammad had been away from home for just a few days when the attack occurred. His mother, Ather Pervaiz, recalled the last video call she had with him, only a day before the attack. Hammad was reportedly happy to be back at work and had even shown her around the ship.

Hammad was a qualified marine engineer, having graduated from Glasgow University in the UK. Upon hearing the news, Hammad's three-year-old son, Musa, rushed over to his uncle, exclaiming "This is my Baba. He is with Allah Mian [God Almighty] now."