Navy Commandos Rescue All 21 Crew Members, Including 15 Indians, On Board Hijacked Ship

Mumbai: Commandos of the Indian Navy on Friday rescued all 21 crew members, including 15 Indians, on board the hijacked cargo vessel off Somalia coast.

The elite commandos MARCOS sailed to the ‘MV Lila Norfolk’ on Indian Navy warship INS Chennai and boarded the Liberian-flagged ship.

INS Chennai, a navy destroyer which was diverted from its anti-piracy patrol, launched its helicopter and issued warning to pirates to abandon the hijacked vessel.

The commandos confirmed the absence of hijackers, the Navy said.

MV Lila Norfolk, sailing from Port Du Aco (Brazil), was bound for Khalifa Bin Salman in Bahrain.

Late on Thursday, the hijacking was reported by UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), a military organisation that tracks movements of various vessels in strategic waterways.

Five or six unknown armed personnel had boarded the vessel on evening of January 4, the Indian Navy statement said.

INS Chennai, maritime patrol aircraft P-8I and long-range Predator MQ9B drone, were deployed to assist the vessel in distress. INS Chennai intercepted the vessel at 3.15 pm in the North Arabian Sea.

“The attempt of hijacking by the pirates was probably abandoned with the forceful warning by the Indian Navy’s Maritime Patrol Aircraft of interception by Indian Naval warship,” the Navy said in a statement.

In December, Indian Navy deployed several warships in the sea to “maintain a deterrent presence” following a series of attacks, including a drone attack, near Gujarat coast for which the US put the blame on Iran.

Several vessels have been rerouted from Red Sea, where Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have been launching drone and missile attacks in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, where Israel is battling Hamas.