EU Naval Force - Somalia
Operation ATALANTA

On the 23rd of January, EU NAVFOR Warship ESPS NAVARRA completed successfully the escort of MV POWER STAR to Salalah.

The World Food Programme chartered vessel left Mombassa on the 13th of January and initially met EU Warship FGS BREMEN and was accompanied until treaching Mogadishu. From there ESPS NAVARRA took  responsibility for escorting the ship to her final destination.

Both EUNAVFOR Warships provided close protection to the MV POWER STAAR while transiting the Somali coast and across the Gulf of Aden. These waters have recently witnessed a number of attempted pirate hijackings.

MV POWER STAR was chartered by the WFP office in Nairobi (Kenya) and is carrying humanitarian aid to Somalia. No WFP chartered vessels has been hijacked since the beginning of EU NAVFOR mission in December 2008.

EU NAVFOR SOMALIA Operation ATALANTA main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid of the ‘World Food Program’ (WFP) and to protect vulnerable ships in the Gulf of Aden in order to deter and disrupt piracy