Vice-Admiral Antonio Martorell, Commander of Operation EUNAVFOR Atalanta, recalled on Tuesday 23 April, that piracy had not been eradicated in Somali waters after an attack on 21 April on two fishing boats in the Indian Ocean, 280 nautical miles off the Somali coast.
“The dismantling of the Pirate Group, after the release of the hijacked dhow from which they had carried out attacks on two fishing vessels, shows piracy in the waters of Somalia is not eradicated. EUNAVFOR Atalanta will continue acting with determination to counter this matter”, he stressed on Twitter.
According to a statement by the EU naval force EUNAVFOR Atalanta, the attacks were thwarted and the crew and vessels remained safe thanks to the implementation of Best Management Practices (BMP) protection measures by the captains, crews and private maritime security teams on board the two fishing vessels.
EUNAVFOR Atalanta dispatched its maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft to search the area and the flagship, ESPS Navarra, left the port of Mombasa (Kenya) to proceed to the area. On April 23, the flagship intercepted and boarded the dhow used as a ‘mother ship’. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)