Polish Cargo Ship Attacked Off Nigeria; 5 Abducted

Gunmen attacked a ship belonging to a Polish cargo company, off the Nigerian coast, and abducted five sailors, according to Reuters.

Some 11 other crew members are barricaded inside the ship, he said.

The agency quoted Witold Waszczykowski, Polish foreign minister, as saying that the kidnappers have not made any demand.

Nigerian Navy boats are bringing navigators and troops to the boat, which is now flying a Cypriot flag, the firm said in a statement posted on its web site.

The area where the kidnapping took place was not traditionally frequented by pirates, Polish Maritime Minister Marek Grobarczyk said. “Poland and Nigeria don’t have any diplomatic problems so they are purely after money”, said Michael Uwaka, CEO of Melka Africa Limited, speaking to local media.

The ship was attacked while transporting metal cranes and other items from Antwerp in Belgium to Nigeria.

EuroAfrica reported that the Szafir sustained damage when the attackers opened fire, but that no traces of blood were found aboard, nor any casualties reported.

A woman whose husbans is apparently onboard the vessel has told Poland’s TVN 24 station that “more than a dozen sailors locked themselves in the engine room and turned off the engines”.

Earlier this year, suspected pirates killed four soldiers and a policeman in a coordinated attack on a military base in Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta.