Somali pirates hijack Indian ship with 21 sailors at Oman port

Somali pirates have hijacked yet another Indian vessel with 21 Indian sailors on board. The ship, mv Fairchem Bogey, was taken over at the Omani port of Salalah early today, the directorate general of shipping said.

Fairchem Bogey, a chemical-oil tanker managed by Mumbai-based Anglo-Eastern Ship Management, was anchored at the Salalah port for loading methanol, when it was taken over by the pirates, the DGS said.

Reports quoting port sources said the ship was at Salalah anchorage since last evening and was hijacked early in the morning. Sources also said the ship might already be on its way to Somalia.

Somali pirates usually operate in Indian Ocean waters and it is strange that they managed to hijack a ship from the heavily patrolled Salalah port, a source commented.

While the directorate general of shipping has barred Indian vessels from plying in waters south or west of the line joining Salalah and Male, the hijacking has taken place at the Salalah Port itself.

Oman, strategically located at the mouth of the Gulf accounts for bulk of the world's crude shipments.

Somali pirates had, in January, hijacked a 20,586-tonne Algerian vessel about 150 miles southeast of Salalah.