Somali pirates are taking a hijacked Malaysian tanker to their coastal base, where gunmen are already holding six vessels for ransom, REUTERS quoted a local official as saying on Sunday. The Bunga Melati 5 was carrying 30,000 tonnes of petrochemicals to Singapore. Pirates from Somalia have hijacked at least 30 ships in the area so far this year, making the waters off the Horn of Africa nation the most dangerous in the world. "The Malaysian ship is being sailed towards Eyl where another six vessels are held," Abdulqadir Muse Yusuf, assistant minister for fisheries in the northern Puntland region, told Reuters. He accused villagers in Alula, Bargal and Eyl of providing the pirates with supplies and said radio operators on the coast were also helping the gangs. "The pirates are increasing dramatically in numbers and in strength," Yusuf said. The Bunga Melati 5, which is owned by Malaysian national carrier MISC, had 36 Malaysians and five Filipinos on board. MISC said the tanker had been travelling "within the vicinity" of a security corridor set up last week by a multinational anti-terrorism task force in response to the sharp rise in attacks. MISC said coalition naval forces in the area had been alerted but were unable to stop the hijacking because the safety of the crew onboard the Malaysian ship was the priority.
