Somali pirates hijacked three Thai fishing vessels with 77 crew aboard more than 1,200 miles (1,930 kilometers) from the Somali coast, the farthest-off-shore attack to date, the EU Naval Force confirmed today.
Pirates have expanded their range south and east in response to an increase in patrols by European and American warships off the Somali shore.
The hijacking happened on Sunday, Cmdr John Harbour, a spokesman for the EU Naval Force said. The attack took place well outside the area that the EU force operates in, he said.
The three vessels - the MV Prantalay 11, 12, and 14 — have 77 crew onboard in total. All the crew are Thai, Cmdr Harbour said. The owner of the vessels is PT Interfishery Ltd.
"This was in the Indian Ocean but far away from the east coast of Africa," said Andrew Mwangura, coordinator of the East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme. "This is the farthest hijacking to date. They are now operating near the Maldives and India."
Somali pirate attacks have continued apace and have spread south to the Seychelles and farther out towards India.
According to the International Maritime Bureau, Somali pirates accounted for more than half the reported piracy incidents worldwide in 2009 and nearly all of the hijackings, with 47 successful captures.
Pirates have increased attacks against shipping vessels over the last year in hopes of netting the multi-million dollar ransoms they can earn. Because of increased naval patrols and increased defences on board commercial vessels, the pirates' success rate has gone down, though the number of successful attacks has stayed about the same year over year.
Agencies