Pirate captive still on board

All crew members of the Lehmann Timbervessel hijacked by pirates in coastal waters of Somaliaat the end of May, among them an Estoniannational, remain on the ship.

Ukraine'sconsulate general in Hamburg hasprovided additional information about the fate of the German cargo shipcaptured in the Gulf of Aden off the Somali coast on May28, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry reported today.

The head of the crisis headquarters said he had a telephone conversationwith the vessel's captain on June 30. The captain said all the crew membersremain on the ship. He said the mental and physical condition of the seamen issatisfactory. The head of the crisis headquarters also talked with severalother members of the crew who confirmed this information.

The information refutes an earlier report according to which the crew hadbeen taken on shore.

The crisis headquarters continues efforts towards the release of the shipand its crew.

Ukraine'sconsulate general in Hamburg,embassy in Kenyaand the consular department of the Foreign Ministry are following the caseclosely.

The hijacked ship had a crew of 15, among them four Ukrainian nationals andone Estonian citizen -- thefirst mate Ardo Kalle.

Ukraine'sChannel 5 television earlier reported citing relatives of the captured sailorsthat almost all crew members of the Lehmann Timber had been taken on shore.

"Hostages of Russian, Ukrainian and Estonian nationality have been taken ashore by the pirates andonly two crew members remain on board," Channel 5 said, citing SvetlanaRudnichenko, the wife of the Lehmann Timber's engineer.