The story:
The Russian foreign ministry has confirmed that a vessel with Russians aboard was captured off the coast of Benin, West Africa.
Reports say that on November 30, the pirates left the ship in the waters off Nigeria, taking three hostages from the crew, most likely, the senior commanders.
What happened?
On November 29, the Russian foreign ministry confirmed that a vessel with 18 Russians onboard was captured on the West African coast.
Maria Zakharova, Official representative of Russian foreign Ministry said, “According to reports, November 29, presumably, was captured a Greek ship under the Panamanian flag with 18 Russians and two citizens of Ukraine on Board. It was previously at anchor in the territorial waters of Benin”.
According to Zakharova, “Clarifying the situation involved the Russian Embassy in Benin, which supports all the necessary contacts with the authorities of the state and other competent Russian authorities”.
However, the officials from Benin have not yet confirmed the incident involving capture of an armed vessel either by pirates or sea robbers. The Russian embassy is trying to contact the concerned counterparts to resolve this issue.
Background:
The captured ship has been identified as a refrigerator ship under the Panamanian flag Saronic Breeze, operated by a Greek company Baltmed Reefer Services Ltd.
November 27 – The ship was identified after an alarm button was activated and contact was reportedly lost with the ship.
November 29 – A day later the refrigerator was spotted drifting a few miles from the attack site.
November 30 – The pirates abandon the ship in Nigerian waters and took three hostages with them most likely to be senior commanders.
Journalist Mikhail Voitenko said, “on November 30, the pirates left the ship in the waters off Nigeria, taking three hostages from the crew, most likely, the senior commanders.”
“The trade for the hostages will pay the ship owner. Usually, it’s two to three weeks, rarely more. In all known cases of seizure of seamen-hostages Nigerian pirates, they were bought and released alive and healthy”.
Snippets: Unsafe waters
Zakharov also noted that only in 2015 there were over 50 attacks on vessels in the Gulf of Guinea, during which people suffered. In 2016, this negative trend continued. “In this regard, the Russian foreign Ministry strongly recommends that Russian sailors in employment take into account the area of the Gulf of Guinea risks”.
In 2015, the Somali pirates were not captured by any commercial vessel, while from the beginning of 2016 at the Western coast of Africa were kidnapped 44 the Navigator. While globally, the level of piracy decreases.
In May 2016, the American organization Oceans Beyond Piracy released a report in which he said that the Gulf of Guinea has become the most dangerous place in the world for navigators because of the increased activity of pirates. The experts found that the sea robbers with the falling prices of oil were less likely to attack oil tankers and switched to kidnapping.
In January 2016, the pirates in Nigeria have seized the ship Leon Dias, owned by the Greek company. On Board, the tanker was one Russian. Later all crew members of the bulk oil tanker have been rescued from captivity.
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Source: x.true-news
