China asks Iran to help recover its hijacked freighter

TEHRAN, April 7 (MNA) – The Chinese Embassy in Tehran, in a statement posted on its website on Friday, asked the Iranian government to take all necessary steps to recover a Chinese freighter which has been hijacked by pirates off southern Iran and save its crew, according to Xinhua. The cargo ship, the “Xianghuamen,” belongs to Nanjing Ocean Shipping Co Ltd in Nanjing, eastern China, the embassy said in the posting. The ship was commandeered Friday morning in the Gulf of Oman near the south Iranian port of Chabahar, the embassy said. There were no other details, including the number of pirates or crew members. An official with Nanjing Ocean Shipping contacted by telephone confirmed the hijacking, but would not provide further information.