Pirates seize Malaysian tanker off Somalia's coast

[August 20, 2008]  KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) -- Armed pirates seized a Malaysian palm oil tanker with 39 crew off the coast of Somalia -- the fourth hijacking in a month, a global maritime watchdog said Wednesday.

Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center in Kuala Lumpur, said the center received a distress signal late Tuesday about the raid on the MT Bunga Melati Dua and immediately notified Western naval ships patrolling the area.

An international terrorism task force dispatched a warship to intercept the tanker, which was heading toward Somalia territorial waters, he said.

"We have had no communication with the vessel so far. The distress call was relayed through another ship but the tanker has been confirmed seized by pirates," Choong said.

Once the ship enters Somali waters, Choong said pirates were likely to demand ransom for the release of the vessel and the crew, he said.

"This is the fourth hijacking in a month ... We call upon the U.N. and the international community to take immediate steps to stop the worsening situation," he said. He declined to give further details, citing concern for the crew's security.

The warship was from a multinational naval task force set up to stop terrorism at sea. The naval force includes the United States, France, Germany, Pakistan, Britain and Canada, which currently holds the rotating command.

It was unclear what country was involved in Wednesday's chase.

The Gulf of Aden, where many of the attacks take place, connects the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, forming one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.

Choong said pirates seized a Japanese-owned cargo ship with 20 Filipino sailors on July 20 in the Gulf. A Nigerian vessel was later hijacked, followed by a Thai cargo ship with 28 crew members earlier this month.

Negotiations were ongoing in all cases after pirates demanded ransom for the release of the crew, he said.

The MT Bunga Melati Dua was carrying palm oil from Indonesia's Sumatra province to Rotterdam, Netherlands when it was attacked by unknown pirates Tuesday night, its owner, Malaysian shipping line MISC Berhad, said in a statement.

The ship has 39 crew, 29 Malaysians and 10 Filipinos, it said.

Somalia is the world's biggest piracy hotspot, with 24 reported attacks in the first half of this year.

The impoverished country has not had a functioning government since 1991 and foreign vessels are frequently seized for ransom by pirates armed with rocket-propelled grenade launchers and automatic weapons, making it difficult and expensive to deliver aid.

In June, the U.N. Security Council voted to allow international warships to enter Somali waters to combat the problem. But its 1,880-mile coastline -- the longest in Africa -- remains virtually unpoliced.

Ships have been urged to stay more than 200 nautical miles from the Somali coast, Choong said.

[Associated Press; By EILEEN NG]

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