Pirates seize Bulgarian tanker with crew of 15

12.05.2010 A Bulgarian chemical tanker with fifteen sailors on board was seized on Tuesday in the Gulf of Aden.

"At noon on May 11 the ship MV Panega sailing under the Bulgarian flag was captured in the Gulf of Aden. The ship was headed from the Red Sea to India," said a statement by the Navy Command of the EU. All of the captured sailors are citizens of Bulgaria.

According to the International Maritime Bureau, in 2009, Somali pirates carried out 217 attacks and captured 47 ships. Combating piracy is carried out as part of the 2008 naval mission code named Atalanta by the European Union and the NATO operation Ocean Shield launched in 2009. Operations to protect shipping involve Russian ships.