U.S Claims Chinese Navy Ignored Distress Calls Of Hijacked Israeli Tanker Ship

According to the Pentagon, Chinese naval boats ignored numerous distress calls from an Israeli commercial tanker that was attacked on Sunday.

The USS Mason and Partnerships, purportedly belonging to Japan, retrieved the Israel-associated Central Park tanker that had been hijacked by an “unknown entity” in the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Yemen, according to US Central Command (abbreviated CENTCOM).

Concurrent with the attempted hijacking, two ballistic missiles were launched from Yemeni territory held by the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. The missiles landed 10 nm from the ship without injuries or damage.

The Central Park team of 22 was unharmed. Five armed hijackers tried fleeing in a small boat during the rescue effort and were reportedly detained by the US Navy.

According to Brig Gen Pat Ryder, Pentagon Press Secretary, at least three People’s Liberation Army Navy ships in the vicinity failed to respond to distress calls.

From what is heard, three PLA navy vessels were in the area. They did not, however, answer. Those ships were supposed to be there as part of a counter-piracy activity, but they did not respond, Ryder added.

If there’s a vessel that is hailing a distress signal, then all vessels in the vicinity are required to come, help, and support, he went on to say. This was clearly a piracy-related event in that the vessel in question was boarded by all five of these people. They attempted to gain access to the crew cabin, Ryder explained.

The crew had effectively created a safe haven for themselves. These people attempted to gain access to and control of the vessel. He stated that when the collective task force replied, they practically ran.

Reference: thedailyguardian.com

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Source: Maritime Shipping News