MV Ruen. (Photo: Indian Navy)
New Delhi: Three months after being hijacked in the Arabian sea, the Indian Navy finally freed the Malta-flagged merchant ship MV Ruen from the clutches of Somali pirates south in the Arabian Sea in the western Indian Ocean Region (IOR), on Saturday. The pirates had hijacked MV Ruen in the Arabian Sea on December 14, 2023.
There were 16 crew members on the ship from Angola, Myanmar, and Bermuda. One of them was released earlier on medical grounds.
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According to a Navy statement, the MARCOS (Marine Commandos) – the service’s special forces – launched a major operation against the Somali pirates on board Ruen off the east coast of Somalia. The decision to launch the operation came after the pirates refused to give up and surrender to the Navy personnel.
According to sources in the Navy, there were 35 pirates on board MV Ruen, who were using the vessel as the “mother ship” for carrying out further acts of piracy in nearby areas, around 1,400 nautical miles (around 2,600 kilometres) from the nearest Indian coast.
On Friday, when challenged, the pirates opened fire at the tailing Indian Navy guided-missile destroyer, INS Kolkata. This prompted the Navy to give the go-ahead to the MARCOS commandos to act, albeit with minimal force necessary, to neutralize the pirates’ threat to shipping and seafarers in the area.
INS Kolkata. (Photo: Indian Navy)
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It may be noted that INS Kolkata is currently deployed for anti-piracy mission in the Arabian Sea-Gulf of Aden region.
The Navy said its commando raid lasted for 40 hours, in which 35 pirates were forced to surrender. The commandos also successfully and safely evacuated the remaining crew members of the ship. The vessel has also been searched and cleaned of illegal arms, ammunition, and contraband.
MARCOS commandos practising an anti-piracy drill in Arabian Sea. (Photo: Indian Navy)
This Indian Navy’s MARCOS operation on MV Ruen is one of the rare stories in which a military raid on a hijacked ship well in control of armed pirates has been successful.
Read also: IFC-IOR – The unseen hand that guided response to hijacked MV Ruen
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