Indian Navy rescues merchant vessel from pirates in Gulf of Aden
INS Sharda which was 30 nautical miles at that time responded immediately.
Indian Navy patrol ship INS Sharda fought off pirates at the Gulf of Aden and rescued a merchant vessel, officials said today.
The ship received a distress call yesterday from a Liberian registered ship, MV Mountbatten, 230 nautical miles South-West of Salalah in the Gulf of Aden, which is located in the Arabian Sea near Yemen. The vessel had reported an incident of attempted piracy by two suspicious mother vessels along with 7-8 skiffs.
INS Sharda which was 30 nautical miles at that time responded immediately. The ship was deployed for anti-piracy operations since April 6 this year.
Navy's MARCOS commandos with support of armed helicopter from the ship investigated the dhows and their skiffs by conducting search operations.
#WATCH: INS Sharda, an Offshore Patrol Vessel foils piracy attempt on MV Lord Mountbatten, by 2 mother ships & 8 skiffs, in Gulf of Aden pic.twitter.com/nYuMdvA1GK; ANI (@ANI_news) May 17, 2017
As soon as INS Sharda arrived at the location three of the skiffs "fled the area at high speeds on sighting the warship".
The absence of any fishing gear on board the dhows indicates piracy linked intentions, Navy officials said.
One high caliber ALM rifle alone with a filled magazine was found hidden on board one of the dhows which were confiscated.
Source: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/indian-navy-rescues-merchant-vessel-from-pirates-in-gulf-of-aden/1/956061.html
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