The Maersk container ship that was hijacked by pirates off the coast of Nigeria on its way to Port Onne in Nigeria from Pointe Noire in Congo recently has been freed by the Nigerian army, with the ship and its crew of 25 seafarers released unharmed, according to Shipping Watch.
Maersk said in a statement:: “Presumably a number of criminals came on board and took control of the vessel. Same day late in the afternoon, Nigerian Navy boarded the vessel in a rescue mission.
“25 members of the crew and the vessel were reported safe. Our primary concern is the safety and security of our crews and vessels, and we are grateful that this situation was resolved quickly and safely.”
Technical Paper: Port Security and the Effects of Piracy
This follows a recent reporting by Port Technology that a merchant cargo ship had been hijacked by Nigerian militants recently and that, unless authorities released Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the defence of rights for the people of Baifra company, Radio Bafra, the militants would blow up the ship.
