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The crew of a North Korean freighter hijacked off the coast of Somalia overpowered the pirates and regained control of the vessel, the Associated Press reported on Tuesday.
"About two dozen crew members of the North Korea-flagged vessel were able to fight off the eight gunmen who had seized the vessel late Monday, and the crew was piloting the ship back to the war-battered city's port in Mogadishu," AP said, citing a coordinator of the Kenya-based Seafarers Assistance Program.
The vessel was at anchor after unloading its cargo on Oct. 20. The pirates attacked the vessel on Sunday night or Monday morning. Spokesman Paddy Ankunda of African Union peacekeepers who are charged with protecting the port told AP that the pirates had demanded US$150,000 for ransom.
Press reports that the hijacked vessel was from South Korea were incorrect, AP said, and the piracy report center of the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) confirmed the ship was a North Korean freighter.
After the news was first reported, IMB contacted the North Korean embassy in London and authorities in North Korea. Seoul's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed that the hijacked vessel was not from South Korea.
Three vessels have been hijacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia in the last two weeks. AP said that according to IMB, reported attacks in Somalia have more than tripled from eight a year earlier to 26 as of September.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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