Pirates kidnap seven crew from container vessel in Gulf of Guinea

Dryad Global Maritime Security reported a piracy incident in the Gulf of Guinea, where seven crew members have been kidnapped.

Specifically, the 2015-built, 957-teu MSC Talia F, that was carrying 17 seafarers, is believed to have been en-route from Lome, Togo to Port Libreville, Gabon at the time of the pirates’ boarding.

According to reports, the vessel had a crew of 17 all understood to be Ukrainian nationals.

Reporting indicates that the Portuguese-flagged container vessel MSC Talia F was boarded resulting in the kidnap of seven crew,

Dryad Global highlighted.

It is noted that this piracy incident is the first reported in the area for 2020; Yet, in 2019, there were four reported incidents at Port Libreville and the Owendo Anchorage involving a spate of incidents in December 2019.

Overall, the Gulf of Guinea has been a hot spot for maritime piracy, as Risk Intelligence had recorded almost 100 maritime security incidents across the region in 2019.