Pirates board Singapore-registered ship off Kenya coast

QX179R SG

SINGAPORE: The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) has received a report that suspected pirates had boarded a Singapore-registered chemical tanker off the coast of Kenya.

A distress alert was received at about 11.50am Singapore time on Saturday, said the MPA.

At that time of the incident, the vessel, MT GEMINI, was reported to be on its way from Kuala Tanjung, Indonesia to Mombasa, Kenya.

There are 25 crew on board the vessel.

MPA is working with relevant government agencies and the ship manager, Glory Ship Management Pte Ltd, on the matter.

- CNA/ir

troublemaker2005 SG

for once i agree such jobs should be taken and done by foreign talents.

QX179R SG

Hijacked S'pore-registered tanker stopped off northeast Somalia

SINGAPORE: A Singapore-registered chemical tanker MT Gemini, that was thought to have been hijacked on April 30, has stopped off north-east Somalia.

According to Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority, the location of the vessel is approximately 200 nautical miles north-east of Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia.

The vessel was believed to have been seized by Somali pirates off Kenyan waters. It has 25 crew members on board and is carrying crude palm oil from Indonesia.

The ship's manager Glory Ship Management has contacted all family members of the crew who are nationals of four Asian countries.

Glory said it is also in regular contact with MPA and has assured the families it will do its utmost to ensure the safety and well-being of the crew and this remains its highest priority.

-CNA/ac

QX179R SG

SEOUL - THE 25-strong crew of a Singaporean chemical tanker boarded by pirates off Kenya are safe, the South Korean Yonhap news agency reported Wednesday, citing Seoul's foreign ministry.

The MT Gemini was carrying over 28,000 tonnes of crude palm oil from Indonesia to Kenya when it was hijacked just off Kenyan waters on April 30 and diverted towards Somalia.

The vessel's owner, Glory Ship Management, said on Sunday it last communicated with the crew - comprising 13 Indonesians, three Myanmar nationals, five Chinese and four South Koreans - early afternoon Singapore time on the day of the hijacking.

'The captain of the vessel contacted the shipping line in Singapore earlier in the day via satellite phone and confirmed all crew members were unharmed,' Yonhap quoted an unnamed foreign ministry source as saying on Wednesday.

The hijackers have yet to make demands or ask the company to pay ransom for the crew and ship, Yonhap said, adding that no other information on the hostages was currently available. The 25-strong crew also included 13 Indonesians, three Myanmar nationals and five Chinese, Yonhap reported.

In November last year, a Singapore-flagged cargo ship with 19 Chinese crew which had been hijacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia five months before was freed after sources said a ransom of several million dollars was paid. -- AFP