Pirates kidnapped 12 crew from a Swiss merchant vessel on Saturday, 22 September in Nigeria, Massoel Shipping the ship’s operator informed. The ship was traveling between Lagos and the Port Harcourt.
As Reuters reports, the vessel carrying wheat was traveling between the Lagos and the oil hub Port Harcourt, when pirates boarded it. The pirates kidnapped 12 of the 19 crew members.
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The attack took place about 45 nautical miles south west of Bonny Island. The kidnapped crew members are from the Philippines, Slovenia, Ukraine, Romania, Croatia and Bosnia.
Nigeria was unaware of the kidnapping and it will investigate the incident.
The ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB), in its second quarterly report, says that 107 incidents were reported in the first six months of 2018. In addition, all 2018 crew kidnappings have taken place in the Gulf of Guinea in six separate incidents.
Nevertheless, the report mentions that the true number of incidents in the Gulf of Guinea is believed to be significantly higher than what is reported.
