On Tuesday, 30 January, the Indian Navy conducted the second successful anti-piracy operation in less than 36 hours. The operation off the East Coast of Somalia rescued Fishing Vessel Al Naeemi and her Crew (19 Pakistani Nationals) from 11 Somali Pirates.
INS Sumitra swiftly responded to the distress call from the vessel. “On PM 29 Jan 2024 and through coercive posturing and effective deployment of her integral helo and boats compelled the safe release of the crew and the vessel. The ship also undertook confirmatory boarding to sanitise and also to check on the well-being of the crew who were held captive by the Somali pirates,” the navy spokesperson said in an official statement.
INS Sumitra, the warship on PM 28 Jan 2024, had responded to a distress message regarding the hijacking of an Iranian-flagged Fishing Vessel (FV) Iman, which had been boarded by pirates and the crew taken as hostages. The FV was intercepted by INS Sumitra, and following the SOPs and coercive posturing, the vessel and her Crew (17 Iranian Nationals) were safely rescued in the early hours of 29 Jan 2024. FV Iman was sanitised and released for onward transit.
Past Rescue Missions
The Gulf of Aden has witnessed several attacks on commercial vessels. Since the conflict between Israel and Hamas began on October 7, Houthis have been carrying out drone and missile attacks in the Red Sea in support of Palestinians under Israeli siege in the Gaza Strip, forcing Israel-linked commercial ships to change course and take longer routes around the southern tip of Africa, Reuters reported.
Indian Navy, on 18 January, responded swiftly to the drone strike on Marshall Island-flagged cargo vessel MV Genco Picardy, which had 22 crew members, including nine Indians.
On 5 January, the Indian Navy thwarted an attempted hijacking of the Liberian-flagged vessel MV Lila Norfolk in the North Arabian Sea and rescued all its crew members.
On December 23, MV Chem Pluto, a Liberian-flagged vessel with 21 Indian crew members, was the target of a drone attack off India's west coast.
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