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Somali pirates hijack Korean ship Pirates 'overpowered' off Somalia
(about 1 hour later)
Somali pirates have hijacked a South Korean cargo ship, just a day after a Japanese vessel was seized off the East African coast A group of pirates that hijacked a cargo ship in the waters off Somalia have been overpowered by the ship's crew, according to one official.
The South Korean ship, which was seized late Monday or early Tuesday, had 22 crew members. The ship's capture was reported on Tuesday morning by the East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme.
It was seized near the port in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, protected by African Union peacekeepers. But a few hours later, the programme's Andrew Mwangura said the ship's 22 crew had regained control of the vessel.
The area is notorious for piracy - of 16 reported hijackings worldwide this year, 11 were off the Somali coast. Somalia is notorious for piracy. Only Indonesia's waters are considered more prone to pirate attacks.
"The hijacking was masterminded by the same people who were supposed to bring it into the docking," said Paddy Ankunda, the spokesman for the AU troops in Mogadishu. Only on Monday, a Japanese vessel was seized off the East African coast.
He said the militiamen were demanding a $15,000 ransom to free the vessel. After Tuesday's hijack, militiamen demanded a $15,000 (£7,250) ransom to free the vessel, said Paddy Ankunda, a spokesman for African Union troops in the Somali capital Mogadishu.
The South Korean freighter had already unloaded its cargo at the time of its capture. "The hijacking was masterminded by the same people who were supposed to bring it into the dock," he said.
Somalia is rated as the second most high-risk country for piracy in the world after Indonesia. The freighter had apparently unloaded its cargo - thought to have been sugar - by the time of its capture.
Mr Mwangura said the crew were sailing the ship back to Mogadishu after defeating the pirates.
"I hear the crew on the ship overpowered the gunmen. The crew were 22 while the gunmen were eight," he said.