Two European-owned tankers have been hijacked off the Somali coast, prompting an alert for other vessels to watch for a pick-up in pirate activity, the EU’s anti-piracy naval mission said on Thursday.
The Maritime Security Center run by the EU naval force said the 9,000-tonne Greek-owned, Panamanian-flagged MV Nipayia was seized on Wednesday with its crew of 19.
A Greek merchant marine ministry spokesman said the chemical tanker’s Russian captain and 18 Filipino crew members were in good health and that the boat’s owner, Lotus Shipping, had begun negotiations with the pirates.
PHOTO: EPA
The incident was followed early on Thursday with the capture of the 23,000-tonne Norwegian-owned and Bahamian-registered MV Bow-Asir with an unspecified number of crew.
Salhus Shipping, which owns the tanker, said in a statement from Norway that the crew numbered 27 members of different nationalities and that they had contacted the company after 16 to 18 pirates came aboard with automatic weapons.
“We have no reports of any injuries,” company director Per Hansen said. “We are doing our utmost to ensure the safety of the crew and have established communication lines with naval forces, insurance companies, flag state and charterer.”
Meanwhile, authorities in the Seychelles said three sailors from the Indian Ocean archipelago had been held hostage by Somali pirates since their catamaran was hijacked late lat month.
“Contact has been established with the kidnappers and discussions to secure the release of the hostages are ongoing. The objective of the negotiating team is for the safe return of all three hostages,” Ernest Quatre, Seychelles police chief, said in a statement.
Ransom-hunting Somali pirates attacked more than 130 merchant ships in the region last year, an increase of more than 200 percent on 2007, the International Maritime Bureau said.
The number and success rate of pirate attacks has declined slightly since the start of the year because of unfavourable sea conditions and an increased foreign naval presence in the Gulf of Aden.
Greece, which is home to the biggest commercial fleet in the world, called on the EU “to play a more active role” in cracking down on piracy after the latest two boats were captured.
Merchant Marine Minister Anastasis Papaligouras said the EU should “expand the rules of engagement and the area patrolled by the European naval force.”
He also called on companies “to inform with total accuracy and in good time the competent services” about the movements of boats.
“The pirates are not the only ones with weapons, the international community and Greece have them as well,” Papaligouras said.
In order to “to protect the present and future of our shipping” all means of intervention would be exhausted,” he said.
The rules of engagement of the European Atlanta flotilla charged with protecting shipping off Somalia meant it could use “all means including force.”
OPTIMISTIC: A Philippine Air Force spokeswoman said the military believed the crew were safe and were hopeful that they and the jet would be recovered A Philippine Air Force FA-50 jet and its two-person crew are missing after flying in support of ground forces fighting communist rebels in the southern Mindanao region, a military official said yesterday. Philippine Air Force spokeswoman Colonel Consuelo Castillo said the jet was flying “over land” on the way to its target area when it went missing during a “tactical night operation in support of our ground troops.” While she declined to provide mission specifics, Philippine Army spokesman Colonel Louie Dema-ala confirmed that the missing FA-50 was part of a squadron sent “to provide air support” to troops fighting communist rebels in
PROBE: Last week, Romanian prosecutors launched a criminal investigation against presidential candidate Calin Georgescu accusing him of supporting fascist groups Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Romania’s capital on Saturday in the latest anti-government demonstration by far-right groups after a top court canceled a presidential election in the EU country last year. Protesters converged in front of the government building in Bucharest, waving Romania’s tricolor flags and chanting slogans such as “down with the government” and “thieves.” Many expressed support for Calin Georgescu, who emerged as the frontrunner in December’s canceled election, and demanded they be resumed from the second round. George Simion, the leader of the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR), which organized the protest,
ECONOMIC DISTORTION? The US commerce secretary’s remarks echoed Elon Musk’s arguments that spending by the government does not create value for the economy US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Sunday said that government spending could be separated from GDP reports, in response to questions about whether the spending cuts pushed by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency could possibly cause an economic downturn. “You know that governments historically have messed with GDP,” Lutnick said on Fox News Channel’s Sunday Morning Futures. “They count government spending as part of GDP. So I’m going to separate those two and make it transparent.” Doing so could potentially complicate or distort a fundamental measure of the US economy’s health. Government spending is traditionally included in the GDP because
Hundreds of people in rainbow colors gathered on Saturday in South Africa’s tourist magnet Cape Town to honor the world’s first openly gay imam, who was killed last month. Muhsin Hendricks, who ran a mosque for marginalized Muslims, was shot dead last month near the southern city of Gqeberha. “I was heartbroken. I think it’s sad especially how far we’ve come, considering how progressive South Africa has been,” attendee Keisha Jensen said. Led by motorcycle riders, the mostly young crowd walked through the streets of the coastal city, some waving placards emblazoned with Hendricks’s image and reading: “#JUSTICEFORMUHSIN.” No arrest
RSS