A Virgin Islands-owned chemical tanker carrying 28 North Korean crew members has been hijacked by Somali pirates off the Seychelles, the multinational naval force operating in the area said today.
The European Union naval force EU Navfor said the 22,294-tonne tanker, the MV Theresa VIII, was hijacked yesterday in the south Somali Basin, 330 kilometres northwest of the Seychelles.
The tanker, which was operated from Singapore, had been heading to Mombasa but had turned around and was now heading north, EU Navfor said in a statement.
Attacks on vessels off the Seychelles have surged in recent weeks as Somali pirates extend their range to evade navies patrolling off the Horn of Africa.
Elsewhere, pirates holding a Spanish fishing boat hijacked with 36 crew aboard are preparing to leave the ship after the Spanish government promised a $3.5 million ransom, a pirate said today.
The Alakrana, a tuna boat, was hijacked by Somali pirates in the Indian ocean on October 2nd.
"Most of our colleagues have left the Spanish ship. We may free it some time today," one of the pirates told Reuters by phone from the Somali town of Haradheere.
Reuters