Two commercial vessels, with a total of 22 Indian nationals on board, have been hijacked in separate incidents off the coasts of Yemen and Somalia. This alarming development, reported by officials on Thursday, underscores the resurgence of piracy in the waters surrounding the Horn of Africa. Authorities are closely monitoring the situation as concerns grow over maritime safety in this region.
The crew also included one Turkish national, one Georgian and two Serbian security guards. The status of the LUTUF, its crew and its cargo was not immediately clear. Turkish authorities had not immediately commented on the incident.
In the second incident, pirates seized the Cameroon-flagged cargo vessel M/V LUTUF off Somalia’s Puntland coast on Monday, carrying six Indian nationals among its 10-member crew, according to a Somali official cited by the Associated Press. The ship was seized around 3.5 nautical miles off Marraya in Puntland’s Eyl district and was subsequently taken towards the Nugaal coast, the official said.
The Recruitment and Placement Service Licence agency has been asked to submit an incident report and subsequent periodic updates through the e-Navik online marine casualty reporting system, the report said.
