Somali pirates hijack first commercial ship since 2012

Pirates have hijacked an oil tanker with eight Sri Lankan crew on board, Somali authorities said on Tuesday, the first time a commercial ship has been seized in the region since 2012.

Security forces have been sent to free the Aris 13, a regional police official said late on Tuesday.

“We are determined to rescue the ship and its crew. Our forces have set off to Alula. It is our duty to rescue ships hijacked by pirates and we shall rescue it,” Abdirahman Mohamud Hassan, director general of Puntland’s marine police forces, told Reuters by phone.

Puntland is a semi-autonomous northern region of Somalia. Alula is a port town there where pirates have taken the tanker.

Experts said the ship was an easy target and ship owners were becoming lax after a long period of calm.

The Aris 13 sent a distress call on Monday, turned off its tracking system and altered course for the Somali port town of Alula, said John Steed of the aid group Oceans Beyond Piracy.

“The ship reported it was being followed by two skiffs yesterday afternoon. Then it disappeared,” said Steed, an expert on piracy who is in contact with naval forces tracking the ship.

Aircraft from regional naval force EU Navfor were flying overhead to track the ship, he said. The force declined to comment.

The pirates brought the ship to the port town of Alula, district commissioner Mohamud Ahmed Eynab told Reuters by phone.

A pirate called Abdullahi told Reuters by telephone: “We are now heading on boats toward our colleagues holding the ship at Alula. We are carrying water, food and weapons for reinforcement.”

Data from Reuters systems showed it made a sharp turn just after it passed the Horn of Africa on its voyage from Djibouti to Mogadishu.

The 1,800 deadweight ton Aris 13 is owned by Panama company Armi Shipping and managed by Aurora Ship Management in the United Arab Emirates, according to the Equasis shipping data website, managed by the French transport ministry.

自2012年以来，索马里海盗劫持的首艘商船

索马里当局周二(3月14日)称，海盗劫持一艘油轮，该船上有8名斯里兰卡船员，这是自2012年以来的首宗商船被劫案件。

一名当地警官于周二晚些时候表示，已派出警卫部队解救“Aris 13”轮。

普特兰海警局局长Abdirahman Mohamud Hassan在电话中向路透社表示，“我们决心营救船舶及船员。我们的部队已前往阿卢拉(Alula)。营救遭海盗劫持的船舶是我们的职责且我们必须营救。”

普特兰是位于索马里北部的半自治区。阿卢拉是一个港口城镇，海盗在那里登上油轮。

专家表示，在长时间海盗事件平息之后，船东放松警惕，导致该船成为易于袭击的目标。

据海洋无海盗救援组织John Steed说，周一(3月13日)“Aris 13”轮发出遇险信号，关闭船上跟踪系统，改变航向前往索马里阿卢拉港口城镇。

正在与海军联系，追踪船舶的海盗专家Steed说，“船上报告，昨日下午船舶被2艘小艇跟随，小艇随后消失。”

他补充说，“地方海军部队EU Navfor的飞机正在空中追寻船舶。但海军拒绝透露更多内容。”

地区负责人Mohamud Ahmed Eynab在电话中向路透社透露，海盗挟持船舶前往阿卢拉港口城镇。

一名叫Abdullahi的海盗在电话中对路透社说，“我们正开着小船，前去与在阿卢拉劫持了船舶的同伙汇合。我们携带了水、食物及武器以增援。”

据路透社信息系统数据显示，在经过非洲之角后，船舶急剧转变从吉布提到摩加迪休的航向。