Somali pirates hijack Mozambican-flagged vessel near Mozambique

[News_Editor]

Somali pirates hijack Mozambican-flagged vessel near Mozambique

2011-01-01 19:57:35 GMT+7 (ICT)

BRUSSELS (BNO NEWS) -- Somali pirates have hijacked a Mozambique-flagged fishing vessel in the waters between Mozambique and Madagascar, the European Union Naval Force - Somalia confirmed on Saturday, but few details were immediately available.

EU Naval Force spokesman Paddy O'Kennedy said the small, 140 tonne fishing boat FV Vega 5 was reported missing by her owner recently, but its status of being hijacked was not confirmed until Saturday. It was last seen on New Year's Eve when it was approximately 200 nautical miles (370 kilometers) southwest of the Comoros Islands, not far from the coast of Mozambique.

O'Kennedy said the Mozambique-owned vessel was carrying 14 crew members whose nationalities were not immediately known. "The vessel was towing what looked to be a pirate attack skiff and did not respond to any calls," O'Kennedy added, saying there has been no further communication with the vessel.

Currently, Somali pirates are holding at least 26 vessels with a total of 601 hostages, according to the European Union Naval Force - Somalia, which keeps a record of pirating incidents. Most hijackings usually end without casualties when a ransom has been paid. This, however, often takes many months.

On Tuesday, pirates released a German-owned vessel and its nearly two dozen crew members off Oman after it had been hijacked on May 8, 2010 when it was approximately 120 nautical miles (222 kilometers) south of the port of Salalah, a city in the southern Omani province of Dhofar. Reports say the pirates were paid a ransom of about $5.5 million.

In recent years, Somali pirates have hijacked hundreds of ships, taking in tens of millions of dollars in ransom. Ships are patrolling the shipping lanes near Somalia in an effort to reduce hijackings, but the anti-piracy force has warned that attacks are likely to continue.

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