Somali pirates have seized an Algerian-flagged and owned cargo ship with an international crew in the Indian Ocean, the European Union anti-piracy force said on Sunday.

The MV Blida was pirated approximately 150 nautical miles south-east of the port of Salalah, Oman, on Saturday afternoon, the EU force said.

The 20,586-ton bulk carrier was on her way to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, from Salalah in Oman at the time of the attack. No further details of the attack are so far known, the EU force said.

The MV Blida has a crew of 27 sailors from Ukraine, Algeria and Philippines, the EU force said.

According to the EU anti-piracy force data, Somali pirates are currently holding 28 vessels and 654 people hostage.

On December 31, 2010, the Mozambican-flagged fishing vessel VEGA 5 was pirated in the waters between Mozambique and Madagascar, the EU force said.

Somali pirates have been active off Somalia as the country has had no functioning central government for two decades.

IMO Number: 7705635 Flag: Algeria MMSI Number: 605086160 Length: 157.0m Callsign: 7THO Beam: 23.0m Photo courtesy of Shipspotting.com