Early this afternoon, 8 May, a Marshal Island flagged, German owned, Chemical tanker the MARIDA MARGUERITE, of 13000 tonnes, was hijacked 120 miles south of Salalah (Oman).
The ship was approached by a pirate skiff firing automatic weapons and rocket propelled grenades and the crew reported that they saw the pirates climbing onboard.
The ship has a crew of 22 (19 Indian, 1 Ukranian, 2 Bangladeshi) and it is believed that all are well. A passing merchant ship tried to make contact by VHF radio but received a response from the bridge of the hijacked vessel to “go away”. EU NAVFOR will continue to monitor the situation.
EU NAVFOR Somalia – Operation ATALANTA’s main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid of the World Food Programme (WFP) and vessels of African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM and to protect vulnerable vessels in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean and to deter and disrupt piracy. EU NAVFOR alsomonitors fishing activity off the coast of Somalia.
The ship was approached by a pirate skiff firing automatic weapons and rocket propelled grenades and the crew reported that they saw the pirates climbing onboard.
The ship has a crew of 22 (19 Indian, 1 Ukranian, 2 Bangladeshi) and it is believed that all are well. A passing merchant ship tried to make contact by VHF radio but received a response from the bridge of the hijacked vessel to “go away”. EU NAVFOR will continue to monitor the situation.
EU NAVFOR Somalia – Operation ATALANTA’s main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid of the World Food Programme (WFP) and vessels of African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM and to protect vulnerable vessels in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean and to deter and disrupt piracy. EU NAVFOR alsomonitors fishing activity off the coast of Somalia.