Somali pirates have hijacked Greek-owned ship with 18 Filipino crew members on board, both European Union anti-piracy mission and a regional maritime official confirmed on Monday, reports China’s Xinhua news agency.
European Union Naval Force Somalia spokesman John Harbour and East Africa Coordinator of Seafarers Assistance Program (SAP) Andrew Mwangura said the MT Motivator was seized in the northern Bab Al Mandeb area in the southern Red Sea on Sunday.
Somali pirates. Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/37540250@N05/
“In the early hours of July 4, the MT Motivator reported it was under small arms fire from a pirate attack in the northern Bab Al Mandeb area in the southern Red Sea. After notification of this attack, attempts were made to make contact with the Motivator but to no avail. The hijack was confirmed early on July 5,” Harbour said.
Mwangura told Xinhua that the MT Motivator, deadweight 13,065 tonnes with a crew of 18 Filipino nationals on board, is a Marshall Flagged chemical products tanker loaded with lubricated oil.
EU NAVFOR said it is monitoring the situation which came after a lull of activity in the pirate-infested waters of Somalia.
Pirate attacks off the Somali coast have continued despite the presence of several warships, deployed by navies of the NATO, the European Union, Russia, China, South Korea and India, in the region to protect cargo and cruise ships against piracy.
Attacks in the region started to soar last year, as Somali pirates — long active in these waters — started venturing farther from shore and going after bigger game.
Source: Bernama
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