Bulk carrier freed from Somali pirates after three-month hijacking
A Navibulgar bulk carrier and all 17 crew, hijacked by Somali pirates three months ago, was seized by the Indian naval forces over the weekend.
The navy said Saturday the special commandos on its warship INS Kolkata had forced the surrender of 35 Somali pirates and that the crew of the abducted Maltese-flagged Ruen were rescued without injury.
The 2016-built ship was seized in December off the coast of Somalia, marking the first successful takeover of a vessel involving Somali pirates since 2017.
Earlier this month, a Bangladeshi bulk carrier, Abdullah, was also abducted by Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean with 23 crew members onboard.
The EU naval force said the Ruen, rescued 93 days after it got hijacked, may have been used as the base for the takeover of the bulker owned by SR Shipping, a subsidiary of Kabir Group.
The operation, which lasted about 40 hours, started on Friday when the navy intercepted the Ruen and called upon the pirates to surrender and release the vessel and its crew, after which they opened fire on the Indian warship in international waters.
The Indian Navy, earlier this year, also rescued two Iranian-flagged fishing vessels along the east coast of Somalia and foiled an attempted hijacking of the Liberian-flagged capesize bulker Lila Norfolk in the North Arabian Sea.
More than 20 hijackings or attempted hijackings of ships in the Gulf of Aden and Somali Basin have been recorded since November. As of Friday, there have been no ransom demands from the pirates who hijacked the Bangladeshi bulker now anchored about four nautical miles off Godob Jiraan, Somalia.
Thank you, India Navy! Good job.
Unlike the western scrap in area, who can only bomb sand and civilians.
Oh dear. Poor you.
Agree with you Captain S. this whole situation is just nuts and down right scary. My thoughts are with you and your fellow captains and mariners. If the Western countries’ navies are hitting the sand and civilians and not what they say they are hitting then we westerners are not being told the truth and it gets the news and I hate being told untrue stuff. They need to be telling accurate information. It drives me nuts
Do the Iranians pay well? Or is it Mad Vlad?
Look like Indian Navy doing good job 👍
Proud of my Indian Navy of which i was a member till few years back. What is astonishing is that not many in the world is told about these heroic deeds.
Why does western press avoid talking of a great job done by a developing country like India?
Keep going India and Indian Navy.
Sad.
Sad? Yes, your misinformation is.