On January 9, twenty two crew members from a tanker were reportedly kidnapped by pirates off, the West Africa.
What happened?
The tanker ‘MT Barrett’ was attacked by the pirates in the bight of benin, off the West coast of Africa and took twenty two crew members as hostages.
Shipowners, Union Maritime, to whom the tanker belongs to, have confirmed the attack since losing track of the ship’s location when its AIS data stopped updating.
Efforts to contact pirates:
The officials are prioritising the safety of the crew members by trying to contact the pirates to establish their demands for release.
The group said the safety of the crew has been its first priority throughout the search for crew members.
No further details were available, although a company spokesperson said, “On Wednesday we alerted local maritime authorities and [explored] all possible options and efforts as we continuously [monitored] the situation. Our primary concern is for the 22 crew on board and ensuring their safety”.
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Source: Tanker Shipping
