Somali pirates seize three Thai fishing vessels

Somali pirates have seized three Thai fishing vessels in the Indian Ocean in what the EU Naval Force said was the furthest off-shore attack to date.

The three vessels, carrying a total of 77 crew members, were hijacked on Sunday, about 1,200 nautical miles (2,222km) from the Somali coast.

This is the furthest east that any attack and any hijacking has taken place since Eunavfor arrived in the area in December 2008.

All the crew on board the three ships, the MV Prantalay 11, 12, and 14, are reported to be Thai.

South Korea tanker hijacked by Somali pirates

A South Korea-operated, Singapore-owned oil tanker has been hijacked by Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean with 24 crew onboard.

The 300,000-tonne Samho Dream - loaded with crude oil - was on its way from Iraq to the United States when it was seized on Sunday.

This is one of only a handful of VLCCs that have been hijacked and ransom demands are expected to be high due to the amount of oil onboard - estimated to be worth £110million.