About six pirates took over the MV Ruen about 680 nautical miles east of Bosaso, which is the commercial capital of Somalia’s breakaway Puntland region. On Monday, one of the sailors on board was taken to the Indian stealth destroyer INS Kochi for medical help after being hit by a bullet fired by pirates.
The crew member was hit by a bullet near his shoulder during the pirate attack, but he was said to be stable.
The Indian Navy talked to the pirates and got the injured crew members freed. They were then treated for their injuries on the INS Kochi. He needed medical help right away, and the Indian warship couldn’t provide it, so he was taken to a port in Oman to get treatment from a specialist.
Indian Navy warship INS Kochi helped rescue a crew member from the hijacked vessel MV Ruen who suffered a bullet injury in firing by pirates. The Indian Navy held negotiations with the pirates and secured the release of the injured crew who was given first aid treatment and has… pic.twitter.com/Z1KLgR473T
— ANI (@ANI) December 19, 2023
When the Indian Navy saw a Mayday message on the UKMTO portal on December 14, they jumped into action.
A naval commando unit from INS Kochi was following the Maltese-flagged merchant ship that was taken by unknown attackers in the Arabian Sea. An Indian Navy P-8I maritime patrol aircraft found MV Ruen for the first time on December 15, and the warship caught up with it the next day.
“Responding swiftly to the developing situation, the Indian Navy diverted its naval maritime patrol aircraft undertaking surveillance in the area and its warship on anti-piracy patrol in the Gulf Aden to locate and assist MV Ruen.”
“The aircraft overflew the hijacked vessel on the early morning of December 15 and the aircraft has been continuously monitoring the movement of the vessel, which is now heading towards the coast of Somalia,” the Navy of India said.
Navigation Maritime Bulgare (Navibulgar), the company that was in charge of the ship, said it thought the crew was no longer in charge. Earlier, the MV Ruen said that six “pirates” had gotten on board without permission.
A UKMTO security notice says that the ship was about 680 nautical miles east of Bosaso at the time of the hijack.
The Indian Navy said the hijacked ship has entered Somalia’s territorial waters. The Indian Navy is keeping an eye on how things are going. The Indian Navy also said that it would continue to help sailors in trouble at sea.
