Pirates take 24 hostages and looted another tanker off Gabon, West Africa
The Geden Lines-managed Maltese-flagged 37,879 dwt products tanker Cotton was hijacked and her 24-man Indian crew taken hostage off the West African coast near Port Gentil in Gabon, reports London's Tanker Operator.
The ship was carrying a part cargo of fuel oil at the time of the hijacking, reported Reuters. The company said that it had lost contact with the vessel.
"The company is in contact with the families of the 24 Indian crew members on board and the appropriate authorities have been contacted," Geden Lines said.
"The attack occurred around 200 nautical miles further south than the previous most southerly attack, which was around 160 miles southwest of Nigeria's Bonny Island on April 26," said maritime security contractors AKE.
"It therefore marks a significant expansion of the geographical range of Gulf of Guinea piracy. It also demonstrates the regional nature of the illegal fuel trade, the supply of which tankers such as the Cotton are generally hijacked for," the security company added.
In another incident, pirates robbed a chemical tanker off the coast of Togo this week, a maritime agency and a security source said on Thursday, Reuters reported.
Gunmen in speedboats boarded the Marshall Islands-flagged 31,114 dwt products tanker Ocean Centurion on Tuesday, around 45 miles southeast of Lome, before taking the ship's and the crew's money and belongings, a security source said.
The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) confirmed that an attack had taken place on a chemical tanker in a similar location, but did not specify the name of the vessel.
"On 16th July, the robbers took two crew members and disembarked from the tanker with the rescue boat, taking along ship's cash, crew cash and personal belongings," a report on IMB's website said. "The crew were released later. Three crew members were injured during the incident," it added.
The Geden Lines-managed Maltese-flagged 37,879 dwt products tanker Cotton was hijacked and her 24-man Indian crew taken hostage off the West African coast near Port Gentil in Gabon, reports London's Tanker Operator.
The ship was carrying a part cargo of fuel oil at the time of the hijacking, reported Reuters. The company said that it had lost contact with the vessel.
"The company is in contact with the families of the 24 Indian crew members on board and the appropriate authorities have been contacted," Geden Lines said.
"The attack occurred around 200 nautical miles further south than the previous most southerly attack, which was around 160 miles southwest of Nigeria's Bonny Island on April 26," said maritime security contractors AKE.
"It therefore marks a significant expansion of the geographical range of Gulf of Guinea piracy. It also demonstrates the regional nature of the illegal fuel trade, the supply of which tankers such as the Cotton are generally hijacked for," the security company added.
In another incident, pirates robbed a chemical tanker off the coast of Togo this week, a maritime agency and a security source said on Thursday, Reuters reported.
Gunmen in speedboats boarded the Marshall Islands-flagged 31,114 dwt products tanker Ocean Centurion on Tuesday, around 45 miles southeast of Lome, before taking the ship's and the crew's money and belongings, a security source said.
The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) confirmed that an attack had taken place on a chemical tanker in a similar location, but did not specify the name of the vessel.
"On 16th July, the robbers took two crew members and disembarked from the tanker with the rescue boat, taking along ship's cash, crew cash and personal belongings," a report on IMB's website said. "The crew were released later. Three crew members were injured during the incident," it added.