ARMED pirates have seized two commercial vessels carrying 22 Indian nationals in separate incidents off Yemen and Somalia, taking control of the vessels and their crews, a senior shipping ministry official said on Friday.
The two incidents involved an Eritrea-flagged oil products tanker in the Gulf of Aden, around 30 nautical miles off the coast of Yemen, and a Cameroon-flagged cargo ship off Somalia's Puntland coast. The official said the Indian crew members were safe according to the latest information.
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MT Sibu 1, carrying 20 crew members, including 16 Indians, was hijacked by six armed pirates in the Gulf of Aden on August 20.
"As reported by Recruitment and Placement Service Licence (RPSL) agency - S K S Krishi Marine Services (Opc) Private Limited, six armed pirates are presently onboard the vessel and have taken control of the vessel," he said.
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The crew also includes one Syrian national, one Sudanese national, one Iraqi national and one seafarer whose nationality is yet to be confirmed.
The official said the RPSL agency had been advised to submit the incident report and subsequent periodic updates through the e-Navik online marine casualty reporting system for examination and record.
In the other incident, eight pirates armed with AK-47 type weapons boarded the Cameroon-flagged cargo ship LUTUF off Somalia's Puntland coast on August 17. Six of the vessel's 10 crew members are Indians.
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"The vessel is reported to have been boarded by eight pirates, armed with AK-47 type weapons and operating from two skiffs.
"The crew initially mustered in the citadel. However, the pirates gained access and subsequently brought them to the bridge. The vessel is currently under pirate control. No injuries have been reported thus far," he said.
