Mumbai: After a brief lull, pirates struck
in the Gulf of Aden attacking a Great Eastern Shipping tanker
`Jag Layak` which had 31 Indian nationals on board.
"The Directorate General of Shipping has received
information from the master of the vessel that it was attacked
by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden," a release from the
Directorate General of Shipping said.
The vessel, which was carrying a cargo of crude oil
and was bound for India, is reported safe, the release said,
adding that the incident happened on January 16.
Due to evasive manoeuvring and intervention by NATO
warships, the pirates failed in their attempt to board
the vessel.
All crew members are safe and unharmed, release added.
An increased naval presence in the Gulf of Aden has
prevented a few pirate attacks though pirates still continue
to remain active in the region.
Poor weather conditions in the region are thought to
be the reason for the recent lull in piracy in the first
two weeks of January.
-PTI