New Delhi: Hours after freeing an Iranian fishing vessel from pirates, Indian Naval Ship Sumitra successfully pulled off an anti-piracy operation off the East Coast of Somalia, rescued 19 Pakistanis who were part of the crew on board fishing vessel Al Naeemi from the clutches of 11 Somali pirates, officials said on Tuesday.
It is the second rescue operation within a day for the Indian Navy after saving another Iranian-flagged fishing vessel, FV Iman, from Somali pirates, which had 17 crew members onboard in its anti-piracy operations along the east coast of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden on Monday, an Indian Navy official said in a statement.
According to the Indian Navy, warship, INS Sumitra, intercepted the distressed vessel and pressed the force into action to locate the fishing vessel, which had been boarded by pirates and saved 19 Pakistani national crew members who were taken hostage. The warship acted in accordance with the established SOPs to coerce the pirates for the safe release of the crew along with the boat and ensured the successful release of all 19 crew members along with the boat, an official said.
Subsequently, the ship also undertook confirmatory boarding to sanitise and check on the well-being of the crew who were held captive by the Somali pirates.
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#INSSumitra Carries out 2nd Successful #AntiPiracy Ops – Rescuing 19 Crew members & Vessel from Somali Pirates.
— SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) January 30, 2024 " class="align-text-top noRightClick twitterSection" data="
Having thwarted the Piracy attempt on FV Iman, the warship has carried out another successful anti-piracy ops off the East Coast of Somalia, rescuing Fishing Vessel Al… https://t.co/QZz9bCihaU pic.twitter.com/6AonHw51KX
">#INSSumitra Carries out 2nd Successful #AntiPiracy Ops – Rescuing 19 Crew members & Vessel from Somali Pirates.
— SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) January 30, 2024
Having thwarted the Piracy attempt on FV Iman, the warship has carried out another successful anti-piracy ops off the East Coast of Somalia, rescuing Fishing Vessel Al… https://t.co/QZz9bCihaU pic.twitter.com/6AonHw51KX#INSSumitra Carries out 2nd Successful #AntiPiracy Ops – Rescuing 19 Crew members & Vessel from Somali Pirates.
— SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) January 30, 2024
Having thwarted the Piracy attempt on FV Iman, the warship has carried out another successful anti-piracy ops off the East Coast of Somalia, rescuing Fishing Vessel Al… https://t.co/QZz9bCihaU pic.twitter.com/6AonHw51KX
"INS Sumitra, over the course of less than 36 hours, through swift, persistent and relentless efforts has rescued two hijacked Fishing Vessels along with 36 Crew (17 Iranian and 19 Pakistani) in Southern Arabian Sea approximately 850 nm West of Kochi, and prevented misuse of these Fishing Vessels as Mother Ships for further acts of Piracy on Merchant Vessels," Navy's statement read.
Earlier, in a rapid and effective response, the Indian Navy's mission-deployed guided missile destroyer, INS Visakhapatnam, on January 18 addressed a distress call from the Marshall Island-flagged MV Genco Picardy following a drone attack on the night of January 17.
INS Visakhapatnam, currently on an anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden, promptly acknowledged the distress call. The destroyer intercepted the vessels at midnight on January 18, 2024, to provide immediate assistance.
INS Sumitra, over the course of less than 36 hours, through swift, persistent and relentless efforts has rescued two hijacked fishing vessels along with 36 crew (17 Iranian and 19 Pakistani) in Southern Arabian Sea approximately 850 nm West of Kochi, and prevented misuse of these Fishing Vessels as Mother Ships for further acts of Piracy on Merchant Vessels, the statement harped.
The Indian Navy has once again proved its commitment in the region to act against all maritime threats in order to ensure safety of all mariners and vessels at sea, another naval official said.
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