The European Union naval force says Somali pirates hijacked a cargo ship flying St. Vincent and Grenadines flag, approximately 280 nautical miles west of the Indian Ocean island-nation of the Seychelles.
E.U. NAVFOR commander John Harbour said the 7,561-ton ship appeared to have had engine problems when it was hijacked early Sunday. E.U. ships were sent to investigate the incident.
However, Andrew Mwangura, the East African coordinator of Seafarers Assistance Programme (SAP), told China's news agency Xinhua over telephone from Mombasa that the 23 crew-members aboard the vessel, the Rak Afrikana, were Chinese.
International naval forces have stepped up their patrolling on the high seas to thwart the piracy off the coast of the Horn of Africa, especially in the coastal waters of Somalia.
Experts say piracy will continue to be a problem till an effective government is established on Somalia, which has been plagued by factional fighting between warlords, and has not had a functioning government since the then president Mohammed Siad Barre was ousted in 1991.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.