Somali pirates hijack German chemical tanker

10 May 2010 05:37  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--Pirates, believed to be from Somalia, seized a German-owned chemical tanker off the coast of Oman on Saturday afternoon, the EU Naval Forces (EU NAVFOR) said over the weekend.

A pirate skiff had fired automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades at the 13,000-tonne tanker Marida Marguerite, 120 miles south of Salalah, Oman, it said in a statement. The ship was on its way to Belgium from India, based on media reports.

Oman is one of the countries bordering the Gulf of Aden, which is menaced by Somali pirates forcing some ships to take a longer route to avoid the pirate-infested shores of Somalia.

The German-operated chemical tanker has a crew of 19 Indian, one Ukranian and two Bangladeshi, EU NAVFOR added.

“A passing merchant ship tried to make contact by VHF (very high frequency) radio but received a response from the bridge of the hijacked vessel to ‘go away’. EU NAVFOR will continue to monitor the situation,” it said.

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By: Pearl Bantillo
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