EU-NAVFOR: Pirates free ship with Pinoy crew after 3 months

Nearly three months after seizing it in the Indian Ocean, pirates released this week a cargo ship manned by a crew that includes Filipino seafarers. The European Union Naval Task Force Somalia (EU-NAVFOR) said Thursday the cargo ship MV Beluga Nomination was released Wednesday after being held for 81 days. "The German-owned vessel, which is Antigua and Barbudan flagged, had been pirated on 22 January 2011 approximately 390 nautical miles north of the Seychelles. She was on route to Port Victoria in the Seychelles when she was attacked," the EU-NAVFOR said in a bulletin posted on its website. It said that as of Thursday night, the vessel was "believed to be making for a safe port." According to an earlier bulletin by the EU-NAVFOR, the ship had a mixed crew of 12 including Polish, Filipino, Russian and Ukrainian. The earlier bulletin added the MV Beluga Nomination was attacked in the Indian Ocean, 390 nautical miles north of the Seychelles. MV Beluga Nomination is an Antiguan and Barbudan-flagged, German-owned, general cargo vessel which was on passage to Port Victoria in the Seychelles at the time of the attack. The vessel is registered with the Maritime Security Center Horn of Africa (MSC-HOA) and had reported to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations. "When the pirates boarded the vessel the crew went into a citadel which the pirates were eventually able to enter. It should be stressed that the use of a citadel by crew members does not guarantee a military response," the EU-NAVFOR said in its January bulletin. - KBK, GMA News