KENYA/FILE: Somalis hijack German tanker

Record ID: 360881

  • Title: KENYA/FILE: Somalis hijack German tanker
  • Date: 30th January 2009
  • Summary: MOMBASSA, KENYA (JANUARY 29, 2009) (REUTERS) A SHIP SAILING INTO MOMBASSA'S PORT (SOUNDBITE) (English) ANDREW MWANGURA, EAST AFRICAN SEAFARERS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, SAYING: "We had information that a German ship was hijacked today at about 1230GMT off the coast of Somalia within the Gulf of Aden. The ship was hijacked by gunmen and currently she is heading to the Somali coa
  • Embargoed: 14th February 2009 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement
  • Reuters ID: LVAB4MUQQ6D4M0OZHFV6GYOZZYDJ
  • Story Text: Somali pirates hijacked a German-owned tanker carrying liquefied petroleum gas on Thursday (January 29), the first ship seized in the Gulf of Aden in nearly four weeks.
    Somali pirates on Thursday (January 29) hijacked a German-owned tanker carrying liquefied petroleum gas in the Gulf of Aden, the third ship to be taken this year, a maritime group said.

    "We had information that a German ship was hijacked today at about 1230GMT off the coast of Somalia within the Gulf of Aden. The ship was hijacked by gunmen and currently she is heading to the Somali coast. By the time of hijacking she was heading to Faiz from Europe fully loaded with LPG.
    This is a LPG carrier and the name of the ship is Longchamp. Members on board are one Indonesian and 12 Filipinos," Andrew Mwangura, of the East African Seafarers Assistance Programme, told Reuters.
    The final destination of the tanker, which was flying the Bahamas flag, was not clear. The tanker has a capacity of 3,415 tonnes, Mwangura said.
    Gunmen have been causing havoc in one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, hijacking dozens of ships last year and making tens of millions of dollars in ransom payments.
    The attacks have raised insurance costs, prompted some owners to go round South Africa instead of via the Suez Canal and triggered an unprecedented deployment by foreign navies.
    That has lowered the frequency of successful hijackings, but there have still been three vessels captured in January, showing the threat is still present.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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