Somali pirates attack Slovenian vessel Ariella

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Saturday, 06 February 2010 11:00

Somali pirates hijacked a ship Ariella owned by Slovenian maritime transport company Splosna plovba in the Gulf of Aden for a few hours on Friday morning.

According to the company, international military units liberated the ship along with its 25 crew members, none of whom were hurt after locking themselves inside. The crew is composed of: 1 Bulgarian, 15 Filipinos, 1 Slovakian, 1 Indian and 7 Ukrainian.

 

“The crew followed instructions correctly and escaped to where the pirates had no access,” said Denis Loboda, representative of the Slovenian owner Splosna Plovba.

EU NAVFOR said commados from the Danish command and support warship Absalon boarded the 32,442dwt Ariella in the Gulf of Aden to free the crew members and search for hiding pirates.

The EU naval spokesman, Commander John Harbour, told the Associated Press that the commando raid marked the first time a warship has intervened during a hijacking.