A European Union naval force on Sunday captured assailants who had fired rocket-propelled grenades at a container ship off Somalia’s coast.
The EU force captured the six crew members commanding a whaleboat and skiff after they were located by helicopter and detained following attacks on the 52,000 metric-ton container ship and a fishing vessel, the EU Naval Force for Somalia said Sunday in a statement.
The attack highlights the threat piracy poses to one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.
Piracy in the waters off Somalia’s coast increased in past years following the political turmoil in the Horn of African country, caused by jihadist group al-Shabaab.
According to the EU naval force statement, a security team on one of the vessels and “good seamanship” meant the assaults caused no damage or injuries.
The suspected pirates have been transferred to the “appropriate authority for prosecution,” said the force, which patrols the seas off Somalia.
Hijackings in the region caused havoc for international shipping from about 2001 to 2012, peaking with 176 attacks in 2011.
While the EU’s anti-piracy mission contributed to the decline, a United Nations official this year warned the threat remains high after the first seizure of a commercial ship off the eastern Africa seaboard in five years.
No comments:
Post a Comment