After rescuing the hijacked merchant vessel Ruen and its 17-member crew in the major operation on the high seas on Saturday, which saw marine commandos also being para-dropped from a C-17 aircraft and exchange of gunfire, the Navy is now bringing the 35 Somali pirates in its custody to India.
The pirates, who had commandeered MV Ruen for use as a “mother pirate ship” to launch attacks on other commercial ships in the region, and even shot down a small spotter drone flown from destroyer INS Kolkata during the operation, will be prosecuted under Indian laws here.
On Saturday, the Indian Navy said that it had thwarted the plan of Somali pirates to hijack ships plying through the region (2,600 km from the Indian coast) by intercepting ex-MV Ruen.
“The ex-MV Ruen, which had been hijacked by Somali pirates on December 14, was reported to have sailed out as a pirate ship towards conducting acts of piracy on the high seas, it said in a statement. The ship was hijacked by Somali pirates near the Yemeni island of Socotra.
The vessel was intercepted by the navy warship – INS Kolkata – on Friday. According to the Navy, the pirates opened fire on the Indian warship, triggering retaliation, which resulted in a 40-hour-long operation.
The operation was conducted with the team effort of INS Kolkata, INS Subhadra, high-altitude long-endurance (HALE) unmanned aircraft and P8I maritime reconnaissance aircraft. Additionally, Combat Rubberised Raiding Craft (CRRC) boats and the MARCOS commandos were also air-dropped using a C-17 aircraft in the dramatic mission, the navy said.