FACTBOX-Ships held by Somali pirates

FACTBOX-Ships held by Somali pirates

Sunday, February 28, 2010 Feb 28 (Reuters) - A Panama-registered bulk carrier held for two months by Somali pirates has been released, a Kenya-based organisation that monitors shipping said on Sunday. The Navios Apollon was hijacked by pirates on Dec. 28 on its way to India from the United States with a cargo of fertiliser and a crew of 19 -- one Greek and 18 Filipinos. Here is a list of ships under the control of Somali pirates: * THAI UNION 3: Seized on Oct. 29, 2009. Pirates on two skiffs boarded the tuna fishing boat with 23 Russians, two Filipinos and two Ghanaians on board. * THERESA VIII: Seized on Nov. 16, 2009. The chemical tanker was hijacked in the south Somali Basin, northwest of the Seychelles. The 22,294 dwt tanker had a crew of 28 North Koreans. The captain of the tanker died from gunshot wounds suffered during the hijacking, a Somali pirate said. * NESEYA: Seized on Dec. 18, 2009. The Indian dhow with 13 Indian crew members was seized off the coast of Kismayo in southern Somalia. * SOCOTRA 1: Seized on Dec. 25, 2009: The Yemeni-owned ship was captured in the Gulf of Aden after it left the port of Alshahr in the eastern province of Hadramout. There were six Yemeni crew on board. * AL MAHMOUD 2: Reported on Dec. 28, 2009. The cargo vessel left Yemen's southern port of Aden on Dec. 18, with 15 seamen and a captain on board, all Yemenis. * ST. JAMES PARK: Seized on Dec. 28, 2009. The British-flagged 13,924 dwt chemical tanker had been sailing to Thailand from Spain with a chemical used in plastics production when it sent a distress signal from the Gulf of Aden. Its 26 crew members were from Bulgaria, Georgia, India, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine. * ASIAN GLORY: Seized on Jan. 1, 2010. The British-flagged vehicle carrier was hijacked about 900 miles north of the Seychelles. The 25 crew consisted of eight Bulgarians including the captain, 10 Ukrainians, five Indians and two Romanians. * PIRACY FACTS: -- Globally in 2009, there were 406 reported incidents, in which 153 vessels were boarded and 49 were hijacked. There were 84 attempted attacks and 120 vessels were fired on. A total of 1,052 crew members were taken hostage. At least 68 crew members were injured and eight were killed. -- In all, Somali pirates were held responsible for 217 acts of piracy in 2009, in which 47 vessels were hijacked and 867 crew members taken hostage. By the end of 2009, suspected Somali pirates held 12 vessels for ransom with 263 crew members of various nationalities as hostages, the report said. -- In 2008, 111 vessels were targeted by Somali pirates resulting in 42 hijackings. Although the number of 2009 incidents has almost doubled, the number of successful hijackings is proportionately less. -- Nearly 20,000 ships pass through the Gulf of Aden each year, heading to and from the Suez Canal. Sources: Reuters/Ecoterra International/International Maritime Bureau Piracy Reporting Centre/Lloyds List/Inquirer.net (Writing by David Cutler, London Editorial Reference Unit). Source: Reuters