ID :
177208
Fri, 04/22/2011 - 09:20
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/177208
The shortlink copeid
Some 16 pirates attacked S. Korean ship in botched hijacking: official
SEOUL, April 22 (Yonhap) -- About 16 suspected Somali pirates were presumed to have attacked and boarded a South Korean container vessel in the Indian Ocean a day ago, but they fled after failing to seize the ship, a senior military official said Friday.
South Korean naval commandos found all 20 crew members of the 75,000-ton Hanjin Tianjin safe in the ship's specially designed safe room, known as "citadel," on Thursday. The commandos had stormed the ship after confirming there were no pirates aboard.
The crew foiled the attempted hijacking by immediately shutting off the ship's engine and quickly taking refuge in the safe room to protect themselves from the assailants, military officials said. Commandos found on the ship three AK rifle bullets, a number of bare footprints and signs of attempts to use a satellite phone and restart the engine.
"Given the circumstances, some 16 pirates are presumed to have boarded (the Hanjin Tianjin)," Lt. Gen. Lee Sung-ho of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who was in charge of the Thursday operation, told lawmakers during a parliamentary session.
Alerted of the pirates' approach by gunfire, the crew -- 14 South Koreans and six Indonesians -- swiftly locked themselves in the citadel, Lee said, citing the commandos' interviews of some crew members. At that point, the crew made a distress call.
The Hanjin Tianjin was attacked in waters about 400 kilometers east of the Yemeni island of Socotra, near the Gulf of Aden.
A South Korean Navy destroyer on an anti-piracy mission in waters off Somalia with some 300 commandos aboard arrived in waters near the Hanjin Tianjin about nine hours after the container ship lost contact after making a distress call.
A Lynx helicopter from the warship made a reconnaissance flight over the vessel before the commandos boarded.
Lee said the Hanjin Tianjin is on its way to a safe zone under escort by the destroyer.
In January, the Korean commandos on the destroyer rescued the entire crew of a hijacked South Korean vessel, the Samho Jewelry, in a daring raid. Eight pirates were killed and five others were captured in the operation.
South Korean naval commandos found all 20 crew members of the 75,000-ton Hanjin Tianjin safe in the ship's specially designed safe room, known as "citadel," on Thursday. The commandos had stormed the ship after confirming there were no pirates aboard.
The crew foiled the attempted hijacking by immediately shutting off the ship's engine and quickly taking refuge in the safe room to protect themselves from the assailants, military officials said. Commandos found on the ship three AK rifle bullets, a number of bare footprints and signs of attempts to use a satellite phone and restart the engine.
"Given the circumstances, some 16 pirates are presumed to have boarded (the Hanjin Tianjin)," Lt. Gen. Lee Sung-ho of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who was in charge of the Thursday operation, told lawmakers during a parliamentary session.
Alerted of the pirates' approach by gunfire, the crew -- 14 South Koreans and six Indonesians -- swiftly locked themselves in the citadel, Lee said, citing the commandos' interviews of some crew members. At that point, the crew made a distress call.
The Hanjin Tianjin was attacked in waters about 400 kilometers east of the Yemeni island of Socotra, near the Gulf of Aden.
A South Korean Navy destroyer on an anti-piracy mission in waters off Somalia with some 300 commandos aboard arrived in waters near the Hanjin Tianjin about nine hours after the container ship lost contact after making a distress call.
A Lynx helicopter from the warship made a reconnaissance flight over the vessel before the commandos boarded.
Lee said the Hanjin Tianjin is on its way to a safe zone under escort by the destroyer.
In January, the Korean commandos on the destroyer rescued the entire crew of a hijacked South Korean vessel, the Samho Jewelry, in a daring raid. Eight pirates were killed and five others were captured in the operation.
