MANILA, Philippines – Five Filipino seamen were among the crew of a Malaysian-flagged ship that was hijacked off Yemen, the Department of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
Quoting a report from the Philippine Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, Esteban Conejos Jr., DFA undersecretary for migrant workers’ affairs, said the chemical tanker MT Bunga Melati 5 with a 41-man crew was seized off the Kenyan coast in the Gulf of Aden last Aug. 29.
He said the DFA is now coordinating with concerned Philippine embassies, ship owners and other authorities to secure the Filipino crewmen’s safe release.
Conejos confirmed last Saturday that two Filipino seamen were among the 29-man crew of the Iranian bulk carrier M/V Iran Deyanat reportedly hijacked by suspected Somali pirates last Aug. 21.
All crewmembers of the Iranian ship were said to be unharmed, he added. – Reinir Padua