KARWAR: Finally after five months, Iran on Tuesday released all the 18 fishermen from Karnataka and five from Maharashtra who had been held captive after they strayed into Iranian waters. The group of fishermen will arrive at their port in Dubai on Wednesday.

The Uttara Kannada fishermen were arrested by Iranian security in two separate incidents on July 27 and August 25 last year near Kish Island in Iran.A few of them were sent to jail in Iran and were released later, but they were all held captive in boats near an island for the last five months.A case of illegally entering Iranian waters was registered against them.

An Iranian court had been hearing the case, and on Tuesday afternoon it ordered the release of all the 23 fishermen. The released fishermen have left for the Dubai coast in two fishing vessels, and they will reach the fishing harbour by Wednesday afternoon.

According to sources, the Iranian court has fined 40,000 Iranian rials for each boat and it was paid by the Dubai boat owner who employed the Indian fishermen.The fishermen, who are in international waters, were not reachable for communication.In Uttara Kannada, the families of the fishermen burst into celebration after learning about the good news.   

The Uttara Kannada community in Dubai are planning to gather at the harbour to welcome the fishermen.However, it has not yet been confirmed when they will come back to India. It is said that the annual holiday of the fishermen is in March, which is when they are likely to return to the country, said a source from Dubai.