Somali pirates have seized a Liberia-flagged and Greek-owned ship with 24 people aboard in the Gulf of Aden, officials said today.
The ship, managed by Eurobulk Ltd and named Eleni P, was carrying iron and sailing from Ukraine to China via Singapore. Of the 24 people on board, two were Greeks and the rest Filipinos, the company said.
A security officer for Eurobulk, who declined to be named, told Reuters that 10 people had jumped on the ship at approximately 0510 GMT today.
"We don't have any information on the safety of the crew," the officer said.
Rampant piracy off the coast of Somalia has earned gunmen tens of millions of dollars in ransoms and increased insurance premiums for ships. Some vessels have chosen to take longer, more costly routes to avoid areas where pirates operate.
Reuters