Bartamaha (Somalia):- Pirates have seized a liquified gas tanker in the Somali Basin.

The European Union’s anti-piracy force says the MV York was hijacked Saturday about 90 kilometers east of the Kenyan port of Mombasa.

It says a helicopter sent by a Turkish warship flew over the vessel and confirmed that pirates with weapons were on board.

The Singapore-flagged York has a crew of 17, including a German, two Ukrainians, and 14 Filipinos.

The EU force noted that another recently hijacked ship, the fishing vesselGolden Wave, was seen in the vicinity of the York. That could suggest the pirates are using the Golden Wave as a “mother ship” to launch their attacks.

The EU force says Somali pirates are now holding 19 ships with 428 hostages.

Naval forces from the EU, NATO, and several individual countries are patrolling the waters near Somalia to combat piracy.

Despite the patrols, Somali pirates continue to seize ships and receive multi-million dollar ransoms for their release.

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Source:- VOA.

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