Another merchant vessel was attacked by pirates and fired at off the coast of Yemen while it was transiting the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, Al Arabiya cited Brigadier General Ahmad Hassan Asiri.
Namely, the pirates reportedly fired a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) at the 1997-built oil tanker Melati Satu, which is sailing to the Indian Port of Chennai.
Asiri said that the vessel’s crew sent a distress call and the tanker was soon joined by Saudi Arabian naval vessel Majesty Riyadh. The naval ship accompanied Melati Satu through the Strait.
According to data provided by VesselsValue, the 32,100 dwt tanker is currently underway in the Gulf of Aden. Scheduled to arrive in Chennai on November 5, the vessel started its journey from the Port of Illichivsk, Ukraine.
The incident marks the second attack on a merchant vessels during this week after the liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker Galicia Spirit experienced a suspected piracy attack off the coast of Yemen on October 25.
The 2004-built tanker was approached by a small vessel and fired at utilizing a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG).
“No third parties managed to board the vessel during the incident and all crew members are safe and have been accounted for,” Teekay, the owner of the vessel, said.
The 79,166 dwt tanker, which was able to maintain full propulsion, had a Djibouti warship in attendance when heading away from the area as a precaution.
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