German ship operator: Pirates kidnap 5 crew

Berlin: A German shipping company says pirates have kidnapped five crew members from one of its ships off the coast of West Africa. Sunship Schiffahrtskontor KG says the captives, all Polish and Russian citizens, were seized Friday from the container ship City of Xiamen about 160 kms southwest of Bonnie Island, Nigeria. The Emden-based company said in a statement on its website today that the rest of the crew continued to a safe port unharmed. It is the second time in recent days that a German-operated ship has been targeted by pirates in the region. Hamburg-based Leonhardt and Blumberg said four crew members with Ukrainian, Kiribati and Russian citizenship were kidnapped on April 22 off the coast of Equatorial Guinea. PTI