Liberian-flagged vessel hijacked near Somalia coast, contact established with 15 Indian crew on board: Navy

At least 15 Indian crew members are on board a Liberian-flagged vessel which was hijacked near Somalia’s coast and the Indian Navy warship INS Chennai is moving towards the hijacked vessel to tackle the situation, Indian Navy said in a statement. “Indian Navy’s Mission Deployed platforms responded swiftly to a maritime incident in Arabian Sea involving a hijacking attempt onboard Liberia-flagged bulk carrier. The vessel had sent a message on UKMTO portal indicating boarding by approximately five to six unknown armed personnel in the evening on 04 Jan 24,” read the statement. Responding swiftly to the developing situation, Indian Navy said it has launched an MPA and has diverted INS Chennai deployed for Maritime Security Operations to assist the vessel. “The aircraft overflew the vessel on early morning of 5 January 24 and established contact with the vessel, ascertaining the safety of the crew,” the statement added. “Naval aircraft continues to monitor movement and INS Chennai is closing the vessel to render assistance. The overall situation is being closely monitored, in coordination with other agencies/ MNF in the area,” it further added. The hijacking incident comes days after a Maltese-flagged merchant vessel was seized by unknown attackers in the Arabian Sea, putting piracy in the back in the spotlight. The vessel had indicated that six ‘pirates’ had illegally boarded it. The Indian Navy evacuated one of the 18 crew members, a Bulgarian national, aboard the hijacked cargo vessel to provide medical care after he was injured by the pirates. The sailor was evacuated by the frontline ship INS Kochi. Pirate attacks in the region peaked between 2008 and 2013 but steadily declined thereafter because of the concerted efforts of the multi-national maritime task force including the Indian Navy. With inputs from agencies