Region | Somalia
Somali pirates seize Greek bulk carrier -maritime group
In the latest incident in an increasingly uncontrollable problem, Somali pirates seized a Greek bulk carrier, a regional maritime group said on Wednesday.
- Agencies
- Published: 09:00 November 19, 2008
Mombasa: In the latest incident in an increasingly uncontrollable problem, Somali pirates seized a Greek bulk carrier, a regional maritime group said on Wednesday.
The vessel was the second they had taken since the weekend's spectacular capture of a Saudi supertanker carrying $100 million (66 million pounds) of oil that was the largest hijack in history.
The East African Seafarers' Assistance Program, which monitors attacks at sea, said the Greek ship was taken on Tuesday in the Gulf of Aden with about 25 crew on board. He had no further details but it followed the hijacking of a Hong Kong-flagged ship carrying grain and bound for Iran.
"The pirates are sending out a message to the world that 'we can do what we want, we can think the unthinkable, do the unexpected'," Andrew Mwangura, coordinator of the group, told Reuters in Mombasa.
No ransom has been demanded so far for the Saudi supertanker Sirius Star, which the pirates seized Saturday after dodging international naval patrols in their boldest strike yet.
A spokesman for the owners, Saudi Aramco, said the company hoped to hear from the hijackers later Wednesday.
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