Undersecretary of the Ministry of Communications Kholoud Al-Shehab meets Indian Ambassador Sibi George.

KUWAIT: A solution to the issue of 16 Indian sailors who have been stranded on a ship at Kuwait's Shuaiba Port for the last nine months is likely soon, according to sources close to the matter. The ship named ULA was detained following a legal dispute between the ship's owner and the owner of its cargo. According to reports, the sailors had gone on a hunger strike.

Undersecretary of the Ministry of Communications Kholoud Al-Shehab met last week with Indian Ambassador Sibi George to discuss the implications of the detention of the ship. The ministry confirmed that high-level coordination between several parties has taken place and the matter is going to be settled in the next few days, according to Al-Qabas Arabic daily.

"We are following with great concern the complaint of the crew of the ULA, which has been detained at Shuaiba Port for the last nine months, which led them to go on a hunger strike," the daily said, quoting the Kuwaiti Association of the Basic Evaluators of Human Rights.

"The society has contacted officials at government agencies and the National Diwan for Human Rights and asked them to resolve the issue quickly, in view of the unfortunate humanitarian situation and to preserve the image of the country of humanity," it added.