New Delhi, March 13, 2024: A bulk carrier has been boarded in the Indian Ocean by suspected Somali pirates some 600 nautical miles east of Mogadishu.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said it had received reports from the “company security officer” of multiple persons boarding and taking control of the ship.
“Authorities are investigating,” UKMTO said in a statement, without revealing further details or the name of the ship.
In a separate note, maritime security specialist Ambrey said a Bangladesh-flagged bulker was boarded by 20 armed suspects while enroute from Maputo, Mozambique, to Hamriya, UAE, adding that the operation was carried out from one small and one large craft.
Initiall reports suggest the vessel in question to be the 2015-built supramax Abdullah of SR Shipping and part of the Kabir Steel Re-Rolling Mills (KSRM) Group in Bangladesh.
Ambrey had previously observed the ship altering course to the southeast and increasing speed, which was later on reduced to 1 knot and also advised other ships to “stay well clear of this position”.
“The crew were reported in the citadel, however, this is assessed as unlikely. There have been conflicting reports regarding the crew’s whereabouts,” the UK-based consultancy added according to the reports published in splash247.com .
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.
