Navy kills 12 suspected pirates, recover vessel THE Nigerian Navy yesterday confirmed the killing of 12 suspected pirates during a rescue operation of a hijacked oil vessel. The vessel was recovered along the Forcados axis of the Delta waterways in the Niger Delta. The recovered vessel, identified as MT Norte, was carrying 17,000 metric tonnes of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and was hijacked by suspected pirates in the Gulf of Guinea this month. The Flag Officer Commanding the command, Rear Admiral Sidi-Ali Hassan, said that the Navy alerted NNS Andoni and NNS Ikot Abasi on receiving the report of the hijack, adding that six gunboats and NN vessels were deployed in the rescue operation. “Eight NN vessels were used in the pursuit of the hijacked MT Norte with 16 suspected pirates on board. The participating ships eventually shadowed the hijacked vessel and forced her back into Nigerian waters’’. “An agreed drop point was reached but the suspected militants refused to disembark as earlier agreed, obviously playing for time and darkness to set in. “They finally agreed to disembark from MT Norte at 2045 hours on August 17, 2013 on condition that only one naval vessel would remain within the vicinity of the MT Norte.” “A total of 16 militants disembarked from the MT Norte, instead of 20 earlier claimed to be on board. “The captain also confirmed that no other militant was left on board and no crew member from MT Norte was taken hostage,” Hassan said. He explained further that after disembarking from the ship, the pirates tried to escape through the coastline. According to him, the naval formation in Badagry pursued the boat as the pirates engaged the NNS Badagry in a gun battle. “The gun battle lasted for about 30 minutes after which they were over-powered by the NN gunboat. “Four of the militants were alive and unhurt while the rest of the pirates were killed in the cross-fire. The four survivors, their belongings and three AK 47 rifles were recovered and brought on board NNS Badagry base,” he said. Hassan said the survivors who were currently detained at the NNS Delta had made confession, which is helping the Navy in its investigation. He said that the bodies of the pirates killed could not be recovered as their boat sank because of the damage to their boat in the course of the gun duel. Hassan applauded the co-ordinated nature of the response by various participating units and commands of the Nigerian Navy in the operation. He said that the Maritime Patrol Aircraft from the Nigerian Air Force supported the operation, keeping the hijacked vessel under constant watch. Source: Guardian
Posted on: Tue, 20 Aug 2013 15:37:28 +0000
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