35 Somalis arrive in India to face trial over ship hijacking

AFP | Mumbai, India                                               

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

India brought 35 accused Somali pirates to Mumbai yesterday, days after they were apprehended when naval commandos recaptured a hijacked bulk carrier and rescued several hostages.

The December hijacking of the Maltese-flagged MV Ruen was the first time since 2017 that any cargo vessel had been successfully boarded by Somali pirates.

Indian commandos boarded and took control of the vessel on March 17 some 260 nautical miles (480 kilometres) off the coast of Somalia.

The destroyer INS Kolkata, which led the rescue operation, arrived in Mumbai early on Saturday carrying all 35 men accused of the hijacking.

A navy statement said the operation “upheld the principles of international law and commitment to ensuring safe seas and maritime security in the region”.

An AFP journalist at the scene saw each of the detained men handcuffed to a police officer and taken into police vans. All appeared to be in good spirits although some showed signs of slight injury including visible bandages.

The group was expected to be brought before a magistrate later on Saturday. Navy spokesman Vivek Madhwal said this week marked the first time in more than a decade that men captured at sea would be brought to Indian shores to face trial for piracy.

Under India’s anti-piracy laws, the men face the death sentence if they are convicted of a killing or an attempted killing, and life imprisonment for piracy alone. Last Saturday’s rescue was the culmination of a 40-hour operation.

Commandos parachuted out of a military C-17 airplane to board the vessel in an assault that “successfully cornered and coerced” all 35 pirates aboard to surrender, an earlier navy statement said.

In the process they freed the MV Ruen’s 17 crew members -- nine from Myanmar, seven from Bulgaria and one from Angola -- none of whom were injured in the rescue. Bulgarian vessel owner Navibulgar called India’s rescue a “major success”.