Three hijacked Thai fishing vessels and a Panama-flagged ship M/V VOC DAISY have now arrived off the coast of Somalia in the vicinity of Garacad, EU NAVFOR reported yesterday.
The three vessels, MV PRANTALAY 11, (26 Thai crew) MV PRANTALAY 12 (25 Thai crew) and MV PRANTALAY 14 (26 Thai crew), were reported hijacked on 18th April approximately 1200 n.m east of the coast of Somalia. These hijackings were the furthest east of any pirate attacks in the area since the start of EU NAVFOR’s Operation Atalanta in December 2008, almost 600 miles outside the normal EU NAVFOR operating area.
Another ship, Panamanian flagged VOC DAISY, with a crew of 21 Filipino, was reported seized later by a PAG on the morning of 21 April 2010 in the Gulf of Aden, 190 nautical miles East South East of Salalah, Oman.
EU NAVFOR continues to monitor the situation.