Navy rescues hijacked vessel from pirates, frees 17 crew members

New Delhi, March 16

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After a 40-hour-long operation at sea, the Navy on Saturday freed 17 crew members of a hijacked merchant vessel and made 35 pirates surrender. The ship has also been secured.

The operation started on March 15, when a hijacked merchant vessel that was being used by pirates as a base opened fire on an Indian Navy helicopter in the Arabian Sea. The Navy responded to the firing and its warship, INS Kolkata, intercepted the pirate vessel. Pirates had been using merchant vessel MV Ruen, which had been hijacked by Somali pirates on December 14, 2023.

Commander Vivek Madhwal, Navy spokesperson, said, “After 40 hours of efforts and concerted actions, the Navy today successfully cornered and coerced all 35 pirates to surrender and ensured safe evacuation of 17 crew members in the evening.”