Somali pirates hijack Bermuda-flagged ship

Somali pirates have hijacked a Bermuda-flagged ship in the Gulf of Aden with 25 crewmembers, including 23 Sri Lankans on board, an official said today.

Somali pirates have hijacked a Bermuda-flagged ship in the Gulf of Aden with 25 crewmembers, including 23 Sri Lankans on board, an official said on Wednesday.

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The Virgin Islands-owned cargo ship MV Talca also has a Filipino and a Syrian on board, Andrew Mwangura, the East Africa coordinator of Seafarers Assistance Programme, told Xinhua news agency.

"The Talca was hijacked in Gulf of Aden on Tuesday afternoon. It is a cargo vessel, Bermuda-flagged and managed in Britain," Mwangura said. The ship was on its way to Bushier in Iran, from Sokhna in Egypt.

"The hijacking took place about 120 nautical miles off the coast of Oman," the Kenyan official said.

The incident took place after the ship passed through the International Recommended Transit Corridor, patrolled by warships and maritime patrol aircraft.

The pirates on Tuesday seized the Turkey-owned, Malta-flagged MV Frigia with 21 crewmembers on board.