LAGOS, NIGERIA –  An official says Nigeria's military has helped rescue three Indian nationals who were kidnapped from a cargo ship off Equatorial Guinea and held hostage in Nigeria.
Marilyn Ogar, a spokeswoman for Nigeria's government, says no ransom was paid and five kidnappers were arrested during Thursday's operation that freed the captives in Nigeria's Rivers state.
She provided few details about the operation.
The Indians were kidnapped Jan. 3 from the MV San Miguel, a ship belonging to Equatorial Guinea company Martinez Hermanos Limitada.
After being freed, they were handed over to the Indian High Commission and the Equatorial Guinea Embassy in Nigeria. Ogar said the leader of the kidnappers remains at large.
The International Maritime Bureau says piracy around the world fell in 2013, but increased in West Africa.