News: Another MV Taken in North Arabian Sea

During the evening on 12 February at 1931 UTC, a merchant vessel, believed to be Maltese bulk carrier, MV SININ with 23 crew - 13 Iranian and 10 Indian nationals - sent out a distress signal, saying she was under attack, late afternoon on Saturday to which an aircraft from the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) immediately responded. The aircraft photographed 2 suspected pirate skiffs on board the vessel. No communication with the ship since the distress signal was sent has been made and the vessel is now heading towards the Somali coast.

MV SININ was hijacked in position 1926N 06329E, in the North Arabian Sea, approximately 280nm Southeast of Ras al Had, Oman. The vessel was on route to Singapore from Fujairah, UAE. She was not registered with MSC(HOA), nor had she reported to UKMTO. The position of the hijack is 225km South of  where MV IRENE SL was hijacked.

No further details concerning the vessel and crew are available at present.

The Greek-flagged MV IRENE SL, which was carrying about 2 million barrels of crude oil worth roughly $200 million, and with a crew of 25, was reported hijacked in position 2127N 06318E, approximately 350NM Southeast of Muscat in the North Arabian Sea on 9 February. That hijack came 1 day after the hijack of the Italian tanker MV SAVINA CAYLYN, with 22 crew onboard.

Vessels are reminded that the coalition forces' warships may not be in the vicinity of a pirate attack, subsequently, it is emphasised that seafarers can greatly reduce their chances of being pirated if they follow precautions as recommended in the Best Management Practices, increasing speed and carrying out evasive manoeuvres is a proven deterrent to piracy attacks.

Vessels are advised to exercise extreme caution when navigating in the vicinity of the reported position of the hijack and maintain maximum CPA with any ship acting suspiciously. Additionally, registration of vessel movement with MSC(HOA) prior to transiting the region is recommended.