Somali pirates seize bulker

EU Navfor reports that at midday on December 20, the MV ORNA was pirated in the Indian Ocean, approximately 400 nautical miles northeast of the Seychelles.

The attack was launched from two attack skiffs, with pirates firing small arms and rocket propelled grenades at the merchant vessel. The vessel was stopped and boarded by at least four pirates. The crew is cooperating and no damage is reported.

The MV ORNA is a Panama flagged, UAE owned bulk cargo vessel with a dead weight of 27 915 tonnes. The number of crew onboard is unknown; MV ORNA was not registered with MSCHOA or UKMTO.