Maritime Pirates have boarded and attacked a merchant vessel in the Gulf of Aden.  The pirates have taken control of the vessel and are holding its 24 crewmembers hostage, sailing the ship toward the Somali Coast.  Nato’s counter piracy operation, Ocean Shield, noted that the ship was a mere 10 nautical miles from port when it was hijacked.  The the roll-on, roll-off vessel is the M/V Iceberg 1.  The 4 500-ton Iceberg, is a Panamanian-flagged vessel owned by Iceberg International Limited.

The last communication from the vessel was a mayday call from the captain saying pirates were boarding the vessel.  The 24 crew came from Yemen, India, Ghana, Sudan, Pakistan and the Philippines.

Pirate attacks continue even though there are warships at the ready off the Somali coast.  It is believed that this area of oceanis too vast to effectively patrol.  Therefore, we believe that the most important safety measures are those what need to occur on board any vessels traveling through this area.

Vessel Captains in the region are advised to operate at heightened state of readiness, maintaining strict anti-piracy measures.  Please be sure to report any suspicious activity to the appropriate regional body so that further attacks can be avoided and/or thwarted.

If you would like more information about Maritime Piracy or our firm’s representation of persons injured in the M/V MAERSK ALABAMA pirate attacks, please email us at info@smslegal.com.