Region | Somalia
Somali pirates hijack another ship
Pirates have hijacked another vessel off the coast of Somalia in their latest attack on commercial shipping, a maritime group said on Tuesday.
- Agencies
- Published: 10:50 April 14, 2009
- Image Credit: Reuters
- Somali pirates have taken many sailors hostage off the lawless country's coast.
Mombasa: Undeterred by US and French hostage rescues that killed seven bandits, Somali pirates have brazenly hijacked three more ships in the Gulf of Aden.
The latest trophy for the pirates is the M.V. Irene E.M., a Greek-managed bulk carrier sailing from the Middle East to South Asia.
Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting centre in Malaysia, said the Irene was attacked and seized overnight.
US Navy Lt. Nathan Christensen, spokesman for the Bahrain-based 5th Fleet, said the Irene is flagged in the Caribbean island nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and carries 23 Filipino crew.
Egypt's Foreign Ministry, meanwhile, reported that pirates seized two Egyptian fishing boats on Monday.
The latest hijackings came after US President Barack Obama vowed "to halt the rise of piracy" in Somalia.
Obama said on Monday that the United States would work with nations elsewhere in the world, after a successful operation to free captain Richard Phillips from Somali pirates.
Military officials say the US is considering options including adding Navy gunships along the Somali coastline and launching a campaign to disable pirate "mother ships."
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