Somali hostage ship breakthrough

Food on the ship was intended for Somali victims of the tsunami

The hijackers who seized a UN-chartered ship carrying tsunami aid to Somalia 11 weeks ago have agreed to release the food on board after negotiations.

The MV Semlow is now moving towards a port which serves the capital, where its rice cargo will be handed over to Somalia's transitional government.

The pirates had initially demanded $500,000 in ransom, but the United Nations' WFP says no money was paid.

The ship's owner confirmed passengers were still on board the vessel.

"It has sailed from where she was and she is proceeding to Elmaan port, with passengers on board," Inayet Kudrati of the Motaku Shipping agency told Reuters news agency.

Hampered

The WFP said the journey was likely to take between three to five days.

The crew comprises eight Kenyans, a Tanzanian and their Sri Lankan captain.

The ship, carrying 850 metric tons of rice, was captured off Haradere at the end of June east of the capital, Mogadishu, as it sailed from Mombasa in Kenya.

It had food for victims of last year's Indian Ocean tsunami, near the port of Bossaso.

WFP provides an average of 3,000 tons of aid a month to 275,000 people in Somalia.

But its work is hampered by concerns over security.

The country has had no functioning national government since 1991.

The International Maritime Board has warned of an alarming increase in piracy in Somali waters and has urged shipping to avoid the area.

Last month, three smaller fishing vessels were hijacked by gunman off the southern port town of Kismayo and some 40 crew members are being held hostage.