In a successful anti-piracy operation, the Indian Navy’s warship INS Sumitra thwarted a piracy attempt on FV Iman off the east coast of Somalia, rescuing 19 Pakistani crew members and the fishing vessel Al Naeemi from 11 armed Somali pirates.
The operation came shortly after INS Sumitra had rescued the Iranian-flagged fishing vessel Iman and its 17 crew members in a previous anti-piracy mission along the east coast of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden.
Following established Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), INS Sumitra coerced the pirates for the safe release of the crew and the boat during the interception of the vessel. The successful mission, approximately 850 nautical miles west of Kochi, prevented the potential misuse of fishing vessels as mother ships for further acts of piracy on merchant vessels.
Indian Navy spokesperson Commander Vivek Madhwal highlighted the swift, persistent, and relentless efforts of the navy in the Southern Arabian Sea, reinforcing their commitment to the safety of all vessels and seafarers at sea.
This rescue follows the recent incident where INS Visakhapatnam extinguished a fire on a commercial oil tanker struck by a missile in the Gulf of Aden. The Indian Navy continues to enhance deployment in critical sea lanes to ensure maritime security operations.
