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Greek Ship Seized By Pirates Off Somalia: Report

18 January 2011 01:12 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. A Greek vessel has been seized by pirates in the Gulf of Aden off Somalia, the European Union’s anti-piracy force said Monday, APA reports quoting â€œRTT Newsâ€.
EU NAVFOR said in a statement that the Cypriot-flagged ship came under attack from buccaneers during the early hours of Monday morning. The vessel was targeted using small arms fire and rocket-propeled grenades (RPG) before the corsairs forcibly boarded it and took its 24-member Filipino crew hostage.
According to the taskforce, no further contact has been made with the captured vessel. The incident comes close on the heels of Sunday’s release of another Greek ship--the MV Motivator with 18 Filipino crew members--captured by pirates in July.
The Gulf of Aden off Somalia has been infested with pirates and the absence of a functional government in Somalia has contributed to the menace. Moreover unemployed Somali youth are drawn to piracy by the lure of easy money.
Meanwhile, a recent study carried out by Chatham House, a British think-tank, revealed that the threat of sea piracy is costing the global economy billions of dollars annually. It put the amount roughly between $7billion and $12billion and the figure was calculated on the basis of money paid as ransom plus the cost of security arrangements and its impact on trade and commerce.
The maximum costs were incurred as a result of re-routing vessels to avoid potentially risky sealanes with the additional expenditure estimated at $2.4billion-$3billion while anti-piracy mission involving naval ships off Somalia cost around $2billion.
Most importantly, the study found that despite increased international vigil against possible attacks by buccaneers, there has been a spurt in number of pirate attacks with the outlaws now venturing into uncharted waters.