Arabian Sea hijack: All crew, including 15 Indians on board ship secured, safely evacuated by Indian Navy

All 21 crew, including 15 Indians on board theMV Lila Norfolk vessel, which was hijackedon Thursday (Jan 4), have been secured and evacuated by the Indian Navy.Taking toX, the navy on Fridaysaid, "All 21 crew (including 15 Indians) onboard safely evacuated from the citadel. Sanitisation by MARCOs has confirmed absence of the hijackers."

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MV Lila Norfolk was hijacked near Somalia's coast.

"INS Chennai diverted from her Anti Piracy patrol and intercepted the MV at 1515hrs today, on 5th Jan. MV was kept under continuous surveillance using Maritime Patrol Aircraft, Predator MQ9B and integral helos. The Indian Navy Marine Commandos present onboard the Mission Deployed warship boarded the MV and have commenced the Sanitisation," the navy had earlier shared.

"The attempt of hijacking by the pirates was probably abandoned with the forceful warning by the Indian Navy MPA of interception by Indian Naval warship. INS Chennai is in the vicinity of MV and rendering support to restore the power generation & propulsion, and commence her voyage to next port of call," thepost added.

"Indian Navy swiftly responded to the hijacking incident onboard Liberian flagged Bulk Carrier MV Lila Norfolk deploying considerable strength of assets (both ships and aircraft) and an aggressive intent to counter-attack by pirates," the naval forces said in an official statement on January 6.

All 21 crew of MV Lila Norfolk have been rescued and are safe, the navy added.

Increased surveillance in Arabian Sea after recent attacks

The Indian Navy has increased its surveillance in the Arabian Sea after a recent spate of attacks in the region. According to a report by the news agency Reuters, data from the navy's Information Fusion Centre said that the Indian Ocean Region showed at least three hijackings in Dec 2023.

The hijacking of commercial ships and attempted hijackings by suspected pirates near the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea regions resumed in December after a six-year lull. Experts believed this was because naval forces led by the US have diverted their attention to the Red Sea to thwart Houthi attacks.

Abhijit Singh, head of the Maritime Policy Initiative at the Observer Research Foundation, told Reuters, "The sudden revival in ship hijacking and attacks can only be attributed to the pirates' willingness to take advantage of the fact that the focus of anti-piracy maritime forces has largely shifted from the Gulf of Eden to the Red Sea."

(With inputs from agencies)