The Indian Navy has successfully recaptured the 'Ruen' and rescued all 17 crew members who have been held captive by pirates off the coast of Somalia for three months. All 35 pirates on board have been apprehended. There have been no reported injuries among the crew. The operation took place after the Indian Navy’s destroyer, INS 'Kolkata' intercepted the vessel on March 15 in the Indian Ocean. The 'Ruen' had set sail from Somalia’s central coast, allegedly to carry out more attacks. Once on scene, pirates opened fire on an Indian Navy helicopter and a standoff ensued. With the INS 'Subhadra' providing assistance, a specialized Navy unit was able to corner the pirates, leading to their surrender. The ship had been hijacked by pirates nearly 800 miles from Somalia on Dec 14, 2023, marking the first successful hijacking of a commercial ship by Somali pirates since 2017. Pirates sailed the ship back to Somali waters where it was being held. Report with photos and video: https://www.msn.com/en-za/news/world/indian-navy-seizes-ship-from-somali-pirates-and-rescues-17-crew/ar-BB1k13hu
News
RUEN
The 'Ruen', which was hijacked by Somali pirates in Dec 2023, was reported sailing off the coast of Somalia and may be used to conduct attacks on merchant vessels, the British maritime security firm Ambrey said on March 14, 2023. The ship, which has a black hull, red deck and a yellow smokestack with a red horizontal stripe, was seen sailing eastward 160 nautical miles southeast of Eyl, Somalia. The capture of the Ruen was the first successful hijacking involving Somali pirates since 2017, when a crackdown by international navies stopped a rash of seizures in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. Ransom for the 'Ruen'’s kidnapped crew has not been paid. The pirates were still holding 17 crew after releasing one for medical reasons. The 'Ruen' is managed by the Navigation Maritime Bulgare.
GALAXY LEADER
The 'Galaxy Leader' and its crew are in the hands of the brothers in the Hamas resistance movement and the Al-Qassam Brigades. We have no claims of our own regarding this vessel,” Houthi spokesman Nasr Al-Din Amer said on March 14, and hope was fading for the imminent return of the international crew of the ship. A senior Filipino diplomat saying he did not expect a release until the war in Gaza is over, while the Houthis said, the fate of the sailors was now in Hamas’ hands.On Board were 17 Filipinos, two Bulgarians, three Ukrainians, two Mexicans and a Romanian hostage. 116 days since the hijacking, there was no indication that the Houthis were open to releasing them until the hostilities have ended. The word from the Houthiswas that they will keep holding the ship, and all the crew, until we see an end to the hostilities in Gaza, said Eduardo de Vega, the Filipino foreign affairs official. “It will be difficult for any government to recognize a government which attacks ships on the sea,” said de Vega. So, he said, “there is no point to negotiate, except to ensure humane conditions for the hostages."
MENSAR
The 'Behshad', owned by Iran's Rahbaran Omid Darya Ship Management Co., has been accused of playing a central role in disruptions to commercial maritime traffic in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, and of being a source for vital information for the Houthis. It was even suspected of having sabotaged submarine cables in the Red Sea when damage was noted to these infrastructures used for the transit of Internet data. The ship was nearby at the time of the incident. Even the USA seemed to be convinced that the 'Behshad' is not just a simple cargo ship. The vessel was the target of an American cyberattack which temporarily paralyzed it in February. Two weeks later, it was operational again. The official Iranian version – that it is a commercial ship – is difficult to swallow for experts. It is, for example, far too equipped for a commercial cargo ship. In Jan 2024, it left the Red Sea enroute to the Gulf of Aden and then positioned itself about 100 kilometers from the coast of Djibouti and began zizaging in the Gulf of Aden. The arrival of the ship in the Gulf of Aden coincided with a sharp increase in attacks on ships in this area. The 'Behshad' is thus suspected of crisscrossing the area in search of potential targets for the Houthis and sending them geolocation data so that they can strike right.
ABDULLAH
According to the owner of the hijacked 'Abdullah', there has been no contact with the pirates despite rumors in the local media that a ransom of $ 5 million has been demanded. The 23 crew members were still being held hostage on the ship, which anchored at the Garakad coast near Hobyo port in Somalia on March 14 at 2.00 p.m. The ship's AIS position is very close to the last reported position of the 'Ruen', the Maltese-flagged bulk carrier that was hijacked in Dec 2021. The owner stated that according to the latest information, the pirates have not harmed the crew in any way, and was exploring all possibilities. Neither have the authorities received demands for a ransom to release the crew. There were about 50 pirates on the ship, and the attack may be the first in a series. Four suspected pirate ships have sailed off the coast of Somalia with 36 armed men on board.