Earlier on January 5th, the navy redirected the INS Chennai warship to help a stranded vessel. A naval aircraft also flew over the hijacked ship on Friday and made contact with it.
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The Indian Navy successfully rescued all 21 crew members, including 15 Indians, from a Liberia-flagged bulk carrier that was hijacked in the Arabian Sea. The marine commandoes quickly intervened, safely evacuating everyone from the ship and confirming the absence of hijackers after sanitization.
“The pirates likely gave up trying to hijack the ship after the Indian Navy’s warning. INS Chennai, an Indian Naval warship, is nearby, helping fix the power and propulsion issues so that the ship, MV, can continue its journey to the next port”, Indian Navy spokesperson said on X.
The INS Chennai, a warship, changed its course to help a ship in trouble. The navy shared that a naval aircraft flew over the hijacked vessel on Friday and talked to them. The Indian navy is keeping a closer watch on the Arabian Sea because of recent attacks. They mentioned checking many fishing vessels and inspecting interesting ones this week.
After six quiet years, there’s been a recent increase in ship hijackings by suspected pirates near the Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea. Some experts think this is happening because the U.S.-led naval forces shifted their focus to the Red Sea to prevent Houthi attacks. According to data from the Indian Navy, there were at least three hijackings in December, the first since 2017.
Pirates are making a comeback, and the reason seems to be that they’re seizing opportunities while the focus of anti-piracy forces has shifted from the Gulf of Aden to the Red Sea, according to Abhijit Singh from the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi the navy recently investigated numerous fishing vessels and boarded suspicious ones in the North and Central Arabian Sea.
India, seen as a security provider in the entire Indian Ocean region, aims to boost maritime trade with increased surveillance efforts, as highlighted by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh last month. He emphasized elevating maritime trade from the sea to the sky in the region.
Indian Navy’s Swift Response to MV Lila Norfolk Hijacking in the Arabian Sea
INS Chennai of the Navy is now in action after the hijacking of MV Lila Norfolk, a Liberia-flagged bulk carrier with approximately 15 Indian crew members. This incident occurred in the Arabian Sea, close to the coast of Somalia. Due to a series of recent shipping attacks, the Navy has increased its surveillance in the area. A big problem in the Arabian Sea made the Indian Navy act fast. They got news that a ship from Liberia got taken near Somalia in the Arabian Sea.
So, the Navy quickly started an operation to rescue the ship. This isn’t the first time; they’ve done this before in the Arabian Sea. Due to the increasing attacks on ships in the Arabian Sea, the Indian Navy has stepped up its efforts to keep a close watch on maritime activities.
On Friday morning, the Indian Navy announced its sending INS Chennai to help a ship called MV Lila Norfolk, which is from Liberia and has around 15 Indian crew members. They got a message from the ship saying that on Thursday evening, five to six armed people they didn’t know boarded near Somalia’s coast.
On January 5th, the Indian Navy’s aircraft flew over the hijacked ship and made contact, confirming the safety of the crew. At the same time, INS Chennai was redirected to aid in the operation. The naval aircraft is keeping an eye on the situation, while INS Chennai is approaching the vessel to provide assistance. Reportedly, the crew is secure in a compartment that remains untouched. Currently, no group has taken responsibility for the attack, raising concerns about the safety of shipping in the region due to previous incidents involving Yemeni Houthi rebels.
India Navy’s assistance in other matters
Aside from the recent incidents of hijacking, the Indian Navy has also stepped in to help in situations involving drone attacks. For instance, on December 23rd, a chemical/oil tanker named MV Chem Pluto, carrying 21 Indian crew members and one Vietnamese, was targeted by a drone in the Arabian Sea while heading to New Mangalore port. In response, the Navy swiftly deployed a P8I maritime patrol aircraft and a warship, while the Coast Guard dispatched an offshore patrol vessel along with a Dornier maritime surveillance aircraft to aid the Liberian-flagged commercial ship.
Following the examination of the attack area and debris on the MV Chem Pluto, the Indian Navy, along with support from the US Pentagon, concluded that a drone attack had occurred. The Pentagon spokesperson specifically attributed the attack to a one-way drone fired from Iran. Shortly after this incident, the MV Sai Baba, a Gabon-flagged oil tanker with an all-Indian crew, experienced a drone attack in the southern Red Sea while en route to India.
In response to these events, the Indian Navy took action by deploying P-8I long-range patrol aircraft for surveillance. Additionally, the warships INS Mormugao, INS Kochi, and INS Kolkata were strategically positioned in the region to maintain a deterrent presence.
