INS Tabar may have sunk Thai trawler

More than a week after the Indian navy claimed to have fired at a Somali pirate ship, there are reports that the sunken ship may have been a Thai vessel.

More than a week after the Indian navy claimed to have fired at a Somali pirate ship, there are reports that the sunken ship may have been a Thai vessel.

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A Navy spokesperson said the vessel, which was sunk by the INS Tabar, demonstrated hostile intent and upon being asked to identify themselves, they threatened to throw up the frigate.

Asked if the Navy knew about the nationality of the ship, a senior navy official said, “In that context, the vessel had hostile intent and were definitely pirates.”

While talking to a news channel, Wicharn Ekawat, owner of the ship, however, said the vessel was a Thai fishing trawler.

“It was not a mother ship of the pirates. It was a fishing vessel hijacked the same morning by pirates. They wanted to take it to Somalia,” he said.

Of the 16 crewmembers, one survived, one died and the fate of the rest is unknown, he added.