Tag: hijacking

The crew of a Taiwanese fishing vessel fought against armed Somali pirates to retake their ship The crew of a Taiwanese fishing vessel fought against armed Somali pirates to retake their ship after it was hijacked off East Africa, Taiwan authorities said on Sunday.The 290-tonne Chin Yi Wen with a crew of 28, including nine Chinese, eight Filipinos, six Indonesians and five Vietnamese, had been out of contact since Friday, the foreign ministry said.But the crew managed to overwhelm the six armed pirates and retake control of their ship. "In my memory, this is the first time sailors of a fishing vessel hijacked by Somali pirates have freed themselves on their own," Tsay Tzu-yaw, spokesman for Taiwan's Fisheries Agency, told AFP.The Somali pirates fell into the sea, Tsay said, quoting the fishing boat owner, adding that details of the saga and the fate of the six pirates were not immediately clear.Tsay said three sailors were slightly injured and the ship was heading for waters of the Seychelles.Two decades of lawlessness have carved up Somalia into mini-fiefdoms ruled by gunmen and militia, encouraging rampant piracy.At least 47 foreign vessels and more than 500 sailors are being held by pirates, according to ...

Supply boat seized in separate Thursday attack Pirates have hijacked an oil products tanker off the coast of Nigeria after contact was lost with the vessel and crew over the weekend, the vessel's manager said on Thursday.An official with Greek-based Ancora Investment Trust Inc said the Halifax tanker was still being held. "They are holding the vessel and crew," the official told Reuters.An oil security source told Reuters separately that pirates had hijacked a small oil supply boat, called MV Igbere, off the coast of Nigeria on Thursday.The incidents were the latest in a lengthening string of attacks on ships in the Gulf of Guinea that experts say threatens an emerging trade hub -- and an increasingly important source of oil, metals and agricultural products like cocoa to world markets.Pirates in the oil-rich Gulf of Guinea, which stretches from Guinea to Angola, tend to raid ships for cash and cargo rather than hijacking the crews for ransom like their counterparts off the coast of Somalia, analysts say."What they are aiming at is the cargo," said the official from Ancora Investment Trust, which manages the tanker.The official said the Halifax had been 60 miles off Nigeria's Port Harcourt before it was ...

Pirates Claim First Major Success in Months Somali pirates have hijacked the Greek-owned MT Liquid Velvet, finally bringing to an end a dry spell that has stretched back months, maritime sources told Somalia Report.The ship, which has 21 Filipino crew members and an unarmed security expert of unknown nationality, was taken in the Gulf of Aden on Monday in position 1202 North - 04538 East.The Marshall Islands-flagged tanker is owned and managed by Athens-based Elmira Tankers.Source: Neptune Maritime Security

The tanker was carrying oil and gas worth of $4.6 million Malaysia maritime authorities have rescued a tanker and a barge which were hijacked in the latest South China Sea pirate attacks, according to officials. A tanker carrying oil and gas worth 14 million ringgit ($4.6 million) was hijacked Thursday in the Straits of Singapore, said Syed Mohamad Fuzi Syed Hasan, a regional operations director with the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency.Authorities located the Malaysian-registered MT Nautica Johor Bahru off the country's east coast Friday after an alert from the shipping company that the vessel was no longer contactable.Navy ships from Malaysia and neighbouring Indonesia managed to intercept the vessel in Indonesian waters though the pirates, about 10 men armed with a pistol and machetes, got away in a speedboat, Syed Mohamad Fuzi said.None of the 19 crew members was injured but their belongings were stolen.The tanker was on its way from peninsular Malaysia to Borneo island, he said.Meanwhile, authorities also rescued a barge with two crew and palm oil worth eight million ringgit on board Thursday off southern Malaysia, said maritime enforcement agency regional commander Zulkifli Abu Bakar.The barge was hijacked from a fishing boat in Indonesian waters Wednesday while ...

Attacks in Asian waters, were 87 in the first nine months compared to 106 in 2010 Pirate attacks that end in successful hijacking off Somalia have declined in the first nine months of the year to 24 vessels from 35 in the same period in 2010 because of naval patrols and counter measures taken by more experienced ship managers and crews. Attacks in Asian waters, including the Indian subcontinent, also continued to see reductions to 87 in the first nine months of the year compared to 106 in 2010."Navies deserve to be complimented on their excellent work: they are a vital force in deterring and disrupting pirate activity," said International Maritime Bureau (IMB) director Pottengal Mukundan. Despite the fall in East African ship seizures, which accounted for more than half of the 352 attacks, worldwide rates of pirate attacks and armed robbery were higher than any other year with 625 seafarers taken hostage, eight killed and 41 injured, he said.Since the monsoon season, Somali pirates have widened their range of attack as far as an Omani port where they attacked a chemical tanker at anchor and under protection by coast security.Source: The Economic Times

On Oct 5, 12 Chinese sailors were murdered after two cargo ships were hijacked on the Mekong River China on Thursday demanded swift action from three Southeast Asian countries as they investigate an attack on the Mekong River that claimed the lives of 12 Chinese sailors near the Thai-Myanmar border. One sailor remains missing.In a related development, a Chinese patrol ship will escort 164 sailors and family members, who have been stranded on the Mekong since the attack, home on Friday.The 12 victims were crew members of two cargo ships attacked earlier this month where the borders of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos meet.A probe into the attack has reportedly stalled due to chaotic border management and lax security measures in the region.Vice-Foreign Minister Song Tao summoned envoys from the three countries and urged their authorities to "step up their investigations, get to the bottom of the matter as soon as possible, report their findings to China in a timely manner and ... severely punish the culprits."The Chinese government values the life and safety of every Chinese citizen and demands a thorough probe of what happened," Song said.The government is shocked and deeply saddened by the incident and strongly condemns the ...

British commandos rescued the crew and captured nearly a dozen pirates. The Marines, armed with pistols and SA-80 automatic rifles and operating from a Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship, the RFA Fort Victoria, sped towards the hijacked ship in inflatable boats as a British helicopter buzzed overhead.They boarded the 56,000-ton bulk carrier Montecristo and disarmed the pirates without encountering any opposition."It was a compliant boarding - the 11 pirates surrendered without firing a shot," said a Ministry of Defence spokesman. "They were arrested and detained on board the ship." The ship's 23 crew - seven Italians, six Ukrainians and 10 Indians - were released unharmed.Four of the Italians were privately-contracted security guards, but in line with international practise they were unarmed and had been powerless to fend off the pirates.The crew had taken refugee inside a secure, armoured area of the bridge when the ship was hijacked, from where they were able to send out distress signals.They also continued to control the vessel's movements, steering it towards the antipiracy forces.The RFA vessel is part of a Nato operation, code-named Ocean Shield, which is patrolling the waters off the coast of Somalia.Support for the raid was provided by a frigate from the ...

The tanker is likely to be released after its cargo had been stolen Pirates have seized a tanker and its crew off the Nigerian coast, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) monitoring group says.The attack happened about 90 nautical miles south of Nigeria's economic capital, Lagos, on Saturday."This is an organised crime activity," IMB Director Capt Pottengal Mukundan told the BBC.Last month, Nigeria and neighbouring Benin launched joint navy patrols to curb growing piracy in West Africa.Nineteen vessels have been attacked off Benin's coast this year - eight of which were hijacked.Capt Mukundan said the seized tanker was registered in the Marshall Islands.The pirates were likely to siphon the cargo into a waiting tanker, he said, without specifying what the ship was carrying.He said the tanker is likely to be released after its cargo had been stolen.In August, a group of London-based insurers rated part of the West African coast in the same high-risk category as Somalia.Capt Mukundan said navies in the region needed more resources to tackle piracy.Six Nigerian ships and helicopters and two vessels from Benin launched joint patrols late last month following mounting concern about piracy in West Africa.International navies - including those from China and the US ...

The 14 Filipino crew members are now safe The 14 Filipino crew members of a Norwegian-managed tanker that was seized in West Africa this month are now "well and safe," the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Saturday.The 14 were among the 23 seafarers on board Mattheos I when it was seized by Nigerian pirates in Lome, Togo last September 14.The DFA said the vessel's local manning agency has informed the families of the Pinoy seafarers about the incident. DFA Secretary Albert del Rosario said he has instructed the Philippine Embassy in Abuja to coordinate with Nigerian authorities for the safe rescue of the Filipino seafarers.The Philippine Embassy in Oslo, del Rosario added, is also talking to the vessel's owner in Norway to ensure that negotiations for the release of the Filipinos is being undertaken.The last kidnapping incident in West Africa involving Nigerian pirates happened in July 2011. Among the victims were 20 Filipino seafarers who were released after 4 days of captivity.Since February 2006, 104 Filipinos have been kidnapped off the coast of West Africa, 88 of whom have been released.Off the coast of Somalia, a total of 32 Filipino seafarers have been held captive by pirates as of ...

The 23-member crew of a Spanish-owned oil tanker hijacked off West Africa The Philippine government says the 23-member crew of a Spanish-owned oil tanker hijacked off West Africa is reported to be safe so far. At least 14 crew members are Filipinos.The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said Friday that the ship's local recruitment agency reported the crew is safe and their families have been informed about the hijacking.The Spanish owners said Thursday they had not heard from the ship since it was hijacked the previous day as it idled 62 nautical miles (100 kilometers) from Benin's capital Cotonou, and are hoping pirates just want to steal the crude rather than seek ransom for the crew.Five Spaniards and two Ukrainians are also aboard.Pirates are separately holding 14 other Filipino seamen in West Africa.Source: AP