Five Lankan fishermen to be repatriated

The five Sri Lankan fishermen who were taken into custody by the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) after their vessel strayed into Maldivian territorial waters will be repatriated next week.

An official from Sri Lanka's Fisheries Ministry told Haveeru that the Maldivian government has agreed to repatriate the Sri Lankan fishermen following a request made by the Sri Lankan government.

"We had spoken to the Maldivian Government through our Embassy in Male and they have agreed to repatriate these fishermen. We are currently monitoring the situation and have been in contact with the fishermen. The Maldivian government has been providing them with all their basic needs and we believe the repatriation will take place smoothly," he said.The Sri Lankan fishermen were reported to have abandoned their vessel as it faced technical difficulties. They were eventually rescued by a merchant shipping vessel and were then handed over to the MNDF.

The vessel had been missing since December 23.