Five crew killed before Puntland forces regain control of hijacked tanker
Puntland authorities say 16 suspected pirates were captured and four crew members injured in the operation off Somalia.
Five crew members were killed aboard the Palau-flagged tanker MT Honour 25 before Puntland security forces rescued the vessel, Somali authorities said. Puntland’s Information Ministry said the deaths occurred before the rescue operation began.
The ministry identified those killed as three Pakistani nationals, one person from Myanmar and one from India. It said four other crew members — three Pakistanis and one Indian — were injured.
Puntland authorities said 16 suspected pirates were captured. The Puntland Maritime Police Force said the tanker was safe and under government control, with efforts continuing to find others involved in the hijacking.
The tanker was seized on 21 April and was reported to be carrying 18,500 barrels of oil. The deaths appear to be the first attributed to Somali pirates in more than a decade, according to the report; the casualty and rescue details have not been independently verified in the supplied material.
At least 15 attacks have been reported off Somalia since April, according to officials. A previous wave of piracy from 2008 to 2014 disrupted a major shipping route and led to hundreds of millions of dollars in ransom payments.
