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UK-flagged tanker with five Bulgarian sailors on board hijacked by Somali prates - report

Tue, Dec 29 2009 11:33 CET

byThe Sofia Echo staff

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UK-flagged tanker with five Bulgarian sailors on board hijacked by Somali prates - report

 
Chinese bulk carrier De Xin Hai which was hijacked by Somali pirates in mid-October was safely rescued on December 28 2009. The Chinese foreign ministry made no mention of a reported ransom payment.

Somali pirates have hijacked a UK-flagged chemical tanker in the Gulf of Aden with five Bulgarian sailors on board, news agencies said on December 29 2009.

According to Itar-Tass news agency, on board the St James Park vessel were sailors from Bulgaria, Russia, Turkey, Poland, Ukraine, Georgia, Romania, India and the Philippines.

According to Reuters, the St James Park and its crew of 26 were sailing to Thailand from Spain with a chemical used to make plastics when it sent a distress signal from the Gulf of Aden on December 28 2009.

Dragovest Goranov, spokesperson of Bulgaria’s Foreign Ministry, confirmed the hijacking to Bulgarian National Television. "There are five Bulgarians onboard the hijacked vessel," he said.

All sailors were hired by Zodiac, a Bulgarian company based in the Black Sea city of Varna, he said, confirming that relatives of the hijacked sailors have been informed. 

Four of the sailors are from Varna while the fifth is from the city of Rousse on the Danube.
 
According to Ecoterra International, a group that monitors shipping off Somalia, at least 10 foreign vessels and 228 seafarers were being held close to the Horn of Africa nation before the latest seizure, Reuters said.

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