Mumbai: A Liberian ship, with a crew of 31 including 25 Indians, was hijacked off the Gulf of Aden Friday morning, officials said here.
The officials of the Directorate General of Shipping (DGS) said the ship's managers, M/s Ishima Private Ltd, Singapore, informed them Friday of the incident.
The ship, M T Biscaglia, had left Dumai port of Indonesia with a loaded cargo and was bound for a European port via the Suez Canal before it was hijacked near the Gulf of Aden.
Its crew also included two Britons, three Bangladeshis and an Irish national.
Following an SOS from the ship, the Piracy Reporting Centre, Kuala Lumpur, contacted the coalition forces. It sent out two helicopters for a recce and saw pirates aboard the hijacked ship which was bound for an unknown destination, the DGS said.
At the time of the hijacking, an Indian Navy ship, which is patrolling in the region and engaged in anti-piracy operations in the pirates-infested waters, was refuelling.
(For updates you can share with your friends, follow IBNLive on Facebook, Twitter and Google+)
displayed with permission. Use of the CNN name and/or logo on or as part of CNN-IBN does not derogate from the intellectual property rights of Cable News Network in respect of them.