Gabon: Seized Turkish ship with Indian crew freed
Pirates have released a Turkish cargo ship with a crew of 24 Indians which they hijacked near Port Gentil off the coast of Gabon in West Africa last week.
The Indian crew of MT Cotton is safe and many of them have called home after their release, family members say.
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The region has so far been considered safe with no previous hijacking or piracy incident recorded there.
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Mr Chatterjee said the pirates had also taken away nearly a third of the ship's cargo.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-23415590
'The region' meaning Gabon, I think - West Africa as a whole is becoming a serious area for piracy.
Piracy epicentre shifts to West Africa
The oil-rich West African Gulf of Guinea is ominously emerging as the epicentre of armed piracy, confirms the half-yearly report released by piracy watchdog International Maritime Bureau (IMB) of the International Chamber of Commerce.
Somali piracy has dipped to an all-time low since 2006 with just four cases reported till June as against 44 in the same period last year, thanks to a concerted counter-piracy campaign by navies from around the world.
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The IMB report registers an alarming surge in piracy and armed robbery in the Gulf of Guinea, mainly off Nigeria, with 31 incidents including four hijackings reported till June this year. The region accounted for all the 30 crew kidnappings reported so far in 2013. The piracy hotspot also saw 56 sailors taken hostage.
Notably, 22 of the 31 piracy incidents and 28 of the kidnappings in the Gulf of Guinea occurred off Nigeria.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/piracy-epicentre-shifts-to-west-africa/article4921496.ece