Indian Navy nabs 61 pirates and rescues

Mumbai: The Indian Navy rescued 13 crew members from a hijacked ship, which had been turned into a pirate mother ship, following a gunbattle in the Arabian Sea, about 600 nautical miles west of India.

In the process, 61 pirates were arrested during the operation. A defence spokesperson said a naval patrol aircraft responded to a call from the MV Vancouver Bridge which was under pirate attack on Friday.
 
The plane located Vega 5, the pirate mother vessel being used in the attempted hijacking.

The pirates tried to flee from the area but were tracked and located. Indian Naval Ship (INS) Khukri, a missile corvette, and Kalpeni, a water-jet fast attack craft already on anti-piracy patrol duties, were diverted to intercept the pirate mother vessel. Kalpeni closed in on Vega 5 which launched two skiffs that fired at the naval ship. Kalpeni responded with limited firing following which a fire broke out on Vega 5. Mother vessels are known to carry additional fuel to provide fuel to the skiffs. Soon personnel were seen jumping overboard.

INS Kalpeni and Khukri brought on board 74 personnel, who included 13 original members of the hijacked fishing vessel.

Vega 5, a Mozambican-flagged fishing vessel was hijacked on December 28, 2010, and since then it has been used as a mother vessel for piracy operations.

Preliminary investigations have revealed that the pirates were carrying about 80 to 90 small arms and rifles and a few heavier weapons. This vessel had been a risk to international shipping for the last four months and had carried out several attacks.

Indian naval ships and aircraft are presently on the lookout for pirates in the area. The apprehended pirates and Vega-5 are being brought to Mumbai for further investigation.

Early this year, the Indian Navy apprehended two pirate mother ships on January 28 and February 11, and arrested 43 pirates.

The operation comes after the Cabinet Committee on Security resolved to adopt a proactive approach last Friday in dealing with sea brigands who have held around 53 Indians as hostages in different hijacked ships. The navy was checking whether the pirates were from Somalia or Yemen. Piracy has plagued the shipping industry off East Africa for years, but violence and ransom demands have escalated in recent months. Pirates held some 30 ships and more than 660 hostages as of February.

— With inputs From AP