Pirates plan more attacks as abducted Bangladeshi bulk carrier moors off Somalia

Emboldened by their vessel capture earlier this week, Somali pirates have set out again to sea to snare more ships passing by.

UK maritime consultants Ambrey have received a report of four suspected pirate skiffs departing from the Hobyo, Nugal, and Mudug areas in Somalia, with 36 armed people onboard. 

The Abdullah, a Bangladeshi bulk carrier abducted by Somali pirates on Tuesday in the Indian Ocean, has anchored off Somalia with authorities in Dhaka saying today they are still waiting to hear what ransom demands will be issued for the 23 crew onboard. The ship’s AIS location is very close to the last reported position of the Ruen, a Maltese-flagged Ruen bulk carrier hijacked in December.

The ship, owned by SR Shipping, a subsidiary of Kabir Group based in Chittagong, was carrying coal from Mozambique bound for Dubai, when it was boarded with ease approximately 600 nautical miles east of Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia. The bulker was forced to share fuel with the pirate-commandeered dhow in a ship-to-ship transfer, as the latter was running low on fuel.

A European Union ship deployed as part of Operation Atalanta has been “shadowing” the bulk carrier, the EU force said in a statement.

Ambrey observed video footage of the moment the first perpetrator boarded the bulker (see below). The vessel appeared to not be conducting evasive manoeuvres at this point. The sea was calm. No vessel hardening measures were visible such as razor wire, water hoses, and water monitors and there were no armed guards aboard.

This is not the first time that ships owned by the Kabir Group have fallen victim to piracy.In 2010, the Jahanmoni, another vessel belonging to the same group, was also hijacked and subsequently ransomed after three months in captivity. 

Piracy was rampant off Somalia for a four-year period from 2008, but then it went dormant for about five years. Earlier this month, the Maritime Security Centre Horn of Africa (MSCHOA) reported an unnamed hijacked fishing dhow departing Somalia with 11 armed persons onboard. In January, Liberian-flagged capesize Lila Norfolk was boarded by armed men some 460 nautical miles off Somalia but subsequently rescued by the Indian Navy.