The Indian Navy successfully rescued the hijacked cargo ship MV Lila Norfolk along with 21 crew members onboard on Friday. The bulk-carrier sent out a distress call reporting the presence of five to six armed personnel onboard the vessel. Responding to the call of help, the commandoes also known as MARCOs, conducted a sanitation operation inside the vessel.
The entire incident was captured on video by the Indian Navy and shared on social media. The video shows the commandos boarding the ship and executing their operation with utmost precision.
The cargo vessel, belonging to Lila Global, was rescued by the Indian Navy ship INS Chennai. Meanwhile, the company’s CEO Steve Kunzer thanked the Indian Navy for their timely intervention. “The vessel and crew are all safe. We want to thank the agencies that assisted in their rescue, in particular the Indian Navy, Capt Rohit Bajpai, Director IFC-IOR and the officials of DG Shipping,” he said in a statement.
According to the military officials, the merchant vessel was hijacked by pirates 300 nautical miles east of Somalia. It sailed from Port Du Aco (Brazil) and was bound for Khalifa Bin Salman in Bahrain. An Indian Navy aircraft has been deployed to keep watch on the ship and communication has been established with the crew, the officials added.
Indian Navy warship INS Chennai, which was earlier reported moving towards the hijacked vessel, has reached the harbour of MV Lila Norfolk off the Somalia coast and issued a warning to the pirates to abandon the ship. The Indian warship has also launched a helicopter and the Marine commandors MARCOS are ready for further operations. All the Indian crew on board have been reported safe, as per the officials.
Crew members chanted Bharat Mata Ki Jai
All Indians, who were part of the 21-member crew onboard vessel MV Lila Norfolk that was hijacked off Somalia coast in North Arabian Sea on Friday, thanked the Indian Navy and chanted 'Bharat Mata Ki' after they were rescued.
In their first reaction, members of the Indian crew said, "...they were trapped for the past 24 hours... relieved after Indian Navy came... I'm proud of you... Bharat Mata Ki Jai..." (24 ghante se band hai... Indian Navy aane ke baad humko thoda rahat mila hai... Indian Navy, I'm proud of you... Bharat Mata Ki Jai."
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