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A Bangladeshi cargo ship in the Indian Ocean has been boarded by suspected Somali pirates about 600 nautical miles off the country’s coast. According to United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reports, the vessel was boarded by multiple people using two craft — one large and one small. The vessel now is heading towards the Somalian coast.
UKMTO’s Company Security Officer (CSO) reports stated that the crew is unharmed and there are 22 unauthorised armed persons onboard. The last known position of the vessel is 0149N 05425E on a course of 315 degrees, heading in the direction of the Somalian coast.
The vessel is the latest to be targeted following a resurgence of attacks by Somali pirates in recent months although the maritime security firm, Ambrey, did not specify that it was Somali pirates who boarded the ship.
The ship was a Bangladesh-flagged bulk carrier – a type of merchant ship used to transport large amounts of cargo – that was heading from Mozambique to the United Arab Emirates. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations advised caution to other vessels in the area and said it was investigating the incident.
Somali pirates caused chaos in important global waterways from about 2008 to 2018. They had been dormant until late last year when pirate activity started to pick up again. Data from the Maritime Security Centre – Horn of Africa, the planning and coordination centre for the European Union’s anti-piracy operation EUNAVFOR, show there have been more than 20 hijackings or attempted hijackings of vessels in the Gulf of Aden and Somali Basin since November 2023.
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Al-Jazeera identified the vessel as MV Abdullah carrying a cargo of 55,000 tonnes of coal. It attributed the information to Kabir Steel Re-Rolling Mills, which owns the vessel.
“A group of 15-20 Somali pirates hijacked the ship,” Al-Jazeera quoted Meherul Karim, chief executive officer of Kabir Steel Re-Rolling Mills.
