Five suspected pirates were captured during the five-hour operation.
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak announced the successful rescue operation in a televised address.
The Norwegian-owned Samho Jewelry was captured last Saturday after departing the United Arab Emirates for Sri Lanka. The chemical tanker was seized about 650 nautical miles southeast of Oman. It carried a crew of 11 Burmese, eight South Koreans and two Indonesians and was operated by South Korea's Samho Shipping.
A South Korean naval destroyer with 300 special forces on board trailed the hijacked ship for days before moving in, military officials in Seoul said. The captain of the ship was shot in the stomach by the pirates, but his injury is not considered life threatening.
The South Korean government was determined not to repeat last year's lengthy hostage drama in which another Samho Shipping tanker and its crew were freed after 217 days, reportedly following a ransom of $9 million.
Meanwhile, pirates have successfully captured two more commercial vessels, the European Union Naval Force Somalia reported on its Web site. The bulk carrier Khaled Muhieddine was hijacked in the North Arabian Sea about 330 nautical miles southeast of Salalah, Oman. The Syrian-owned vessel, which is Togo-flagged, has a crew of 25. It was traveling to Yemen from Singapore.
The 22,825 ton bulk carrier Hoang Sun was commandeered by pirates earlier in the day about 520 nautical miles off the southeast coast of Oman. The vessel is Vietnamese-owned and flies the Mongolian flag. It has a crew of 24 Vietnamese nationals.
There are now 30 vessels and 723 hostages being held by pirates in Somali waters.
