Nigerian Navy rescues 10 Indians from hijacked tanker off Ivory Coast

Ten Indian crew members were rescued with the assistance of the  Nigerian Navy after their vessel was hijacked by pirates on February  13 off Ivory Coast.

According to the Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, the  vessel, which was identified as the product tanker Maximus, was  carrying 12 crew member, 11 of Indian nationality and one Pakistani  national.

The minister added that on India’s request, the naval units from Ghana  and Nigeria followed the hijacked vessel.

The authorities are currently trying to secure the release of the  remaining two crew members.

The AIS data corresponds to the 2007-built product tanker, which was  sailing from Lome when the incident occurred.

On February 11, the Maritime Trade Information Share Centre Gulf of  Guinea (MTISCGOG) reported that a vessel was attacked by six armed  pirates in the Gulf of Guinea, off Abidjan, Ivory Coast.

The centre did not disclose the name of the vessel in question, but  said that five crew members were taken by the pirates while the rest  of the crew were in the safe room aboard the tanker.



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