DUBAI // The crew of a ship that was hijacked in the Indian Ocean by pirates in the early hours of Christmas Day are believed to be unharmed, according to a piracy watchdog group.
The 20,377-tonne cargo ship, MV Thor Nexus, was on its way to Bangladesh from the Jebel Ali port when it was hijacked. It was taken just five days after the MV Orna, a vessel owned by a UAE-based company, was captured by pirates about 400 nautical miles north-east of the Seychelles islands.
"We believe that the ship is being commandeered to Somalia but the crew are safe," a spokesman for Ecoterra International, an organisation that monitors pirate activity, said yesterday.
The ship was seized approximately 450 nautical miles north-east of the island of Socotra. No other details of the attack are known.
It is believed the 27 crew on board are from Thailand. Ecoterra said the crew did not seem to be covered by an International Transport Workers Federation agreement that aims to safeguard the rights of ship employees.
The MV Thor Nexus, which is Thai flagged and owned, is managed by Thoresen & Co Bangkok Ltd for Thor Nexus Shipping in Bangkok. Its protection and indemnity insurers are the West of England Shipowners.
