Danish-Owned Vessel Boarded By Pirates In The Gulf Of Guinea

Pirates have reportedly attacked and then, boarded a Danish-owned vessel in the Gulf of Guinea on Saturday and communications networks with the vessel have since been down, a spokesperson associated with the shipping firm Monjasa highlighted.

All 16 members of the crew sought refuge in a room on the Monjasa Reformer ship, a spokesperson associated with the shipping major explained on Tuesday.

The oil and chemical tanker flying the flag of Liberia, which had been idle, was attacked when it was about 140 nm to the west of Port Pointe Noire, based in the Republic of the Congo. The vessel is reportedly operated by the Dubai-based firm named Montec Ship Management and owned by Monjasa.

Montec reported this incident to a maritime cooperation center run by the French and British navies to maintain security and safety in the Gulf of Guinea. Per Monjasa, the operator is working with the region’s relevant maritime authorities, including multiple navies.

The Gulf of Guinea, referred to by the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) to be one of the most dangerous shipping routes worldwide, covers nearly 11,000 square kilometers. It stretches up to Senegal from Angola.

Since 2021, piracy cases have been on a decline owing to collaborations among nations across the region alongside efforts of foreign naval vessels, per the UN Security Council.

Denmark, which has large commercial shipping interests, deployed a frigate to the gulf in 2021 to safeguard shipping, however, the frigate was pulled back in 2022 following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine.

In 2021 (November), a Denmark-based naval patrol took the lives of four pirates in an exchange of fire just outside the territorial waters of Nigeria.

Reference: Aljazeera, Independent

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Source: Maritime Shipping News