Wednesday, January 12, 2011
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"Somali pirates have hijacked an Indian dhow with 14 crewnear Salalah. The incident took place on January 9," a senior official in the Directorate of Shipping told PTI today.The dhow (a slow-moving vessel) was sailing off Oman, about 800 nautical miles from the Somali coast when the pirates attacked, taking hostage all 14 Indian crew members onboard, the official said.
Last year, the Somali pirates carried out several strikes, capturing 11 dhows with over 100 Indians on board.
However, they later released majority of the vessels after payment of ransom.
Repeated attacks on Indian vessels had prompted the government to issue warning to dhows about the dangers in those waters, particularly along the sea-lanes of Salalah and Male.
The merchandise conducted on seas is worth about USD110 billion annually, with Indians being among the majo rplayers.
Source: One India News