Somalia's notorious sea pirates have hijacked an Italian cargo ship en route to Kenya, days after releasing a Japanese

ship, a senior international maritime official said Monday (17 Dec). 

The Somali pirates hijacked the Italian cargo ship off the coastal waters of the Horn of Africa region, as it approached

its destination in Mombasa, Kenya, said Andrew Mwangura, the Coordinator of the Seafarers Assistance Programme

(SAP).  "An Italian cargo ship has been attacked by Somali pirates. Details of the crew and their

nationalities have not been established," Mwangura told PANA on telephone.

Somali pirates often hijack ships and make hefty ransom demands, with the hijackings occasionally turning tragic with

killing of crew members. Monday's hijacking, which comes barely a week after the pirates freed the Japanese chemical

tanker and its 23 crew members, underlines the risk along the Indian Ocean coast.

The Japanese tanker (the Golden Nori), a 12,000 deadweight-tonne tanker, was sailing from Singapore to Israel with

a cargo of chemicals when it was attacked by pirates at the end of October. Her distress calls were picked up by US warships patrolling off the coast of Somalia, which then fired on the pirates'

speedboats, sinking two. The warships followed the kidnapped chemical tanker into Somali coastal waters and trapped the Golden Nori close

to the Somali port of Bossaso. The Japanese tanker was the last ship remaining in captivity off the Somali coastline after the Comoran-flagged cargo

MV Al Marjan was released last month. 

The International Maritime Board has warned of an alarming increase in

piracy in Somali waters and has urged ships to avoid the area. There have been at least 26 attacks by pirates this

year, including three against WFP-chartered ships.

Source : Shiptalk