New Delhi, Nov 26: The sinking by the Indian Navy of a Somali pirate "mother ship" in the international waters off the Gulf of Aden took a curious turn Tuesday with a Thai company claiming the vessel that went down was a trawler it owned.
The Indian Navy, however, stuck to its guns, saying that its stealth frigate INS Tabar patrolling the region sunk the vessel in retaliatory fire after it was first fired upon Nov 18.
The huge fireball that erupted from the vessel after INS Tabar hit it action clearly proved that a large amount of ammunition was on board, Indian Navy spokesman Commander Nirad Sinha maintained.
Wicharn Sirichaiekawat, the owner of the Ekawat Nava 5, however, had a different story to tell.
He told an Indian TV news channel that the vessel was bound from Oman to Yemen to deliver fishing equipment when it was boarded by pirates near the Somali coast.
According to Wicharn, the pirates were taking control of the ship when the INS Tabar arrived on the scene and engaged in combat after being fired upon.
He claimed that 14 sailors were still missing and one crewmember was killed in the INS Tabar assault.
Wicharn said he heard about the incident from a Cambodian crew member who survived and drifted in the ocean for six days before being rescued by a passing vessel and was now recuperating in a hospital in Yemen.
Commander Sinha would have none of this.
"The Indian Navy's stand is very clear. We were first fired upon and then we fired back in self-defence. The vessel was laden with a large quantity of ammunition as shown by the pictures (of the incident)," Sinha told reporters.
"Gun-totting pirates threatened to blow us up in international waters. So, this is an involvement in an act of piracy and we acted in self-defence," he added.
The Indian Navy earned tremendous accolades after the incident. It also said it had received informal clearance from the government to conduct "hot pursuit" raids against Somali pirates if the situation warranted.
The navy said it would beef up its presence in the region by despatching a guided missile destroyer and was even contemplating aerial reconnaissance flights in the area.
IANS
Your comment(s) on this article
This is obviously a story cooked up by Pakistani ISI, the same forces who blew up our embassy in Afghanistan, because Pakistan cannot bear any strategic advantage to India India must push into the Gulf region with greater force and help get rid of the Jihadi forces in Somalia Is our UPA government up to it? -K.Venugopal - Mumbai
Well done indian Navy our forces need to act swiftly if the situation arise thus sending a clear message to the adventursists and thugs that they would n`t be spared to carry out thier illegal acts Alim Khan -Mohamed Alim Khan - Dubai
I dont think the Indian Navy is answerable to anybodyThe action taken is quite appropriate in this situationPerhaps the objection is raised or all this hue n cry is made only to malign the Navy for such a bold action and in attempt to redicule the Navy If this was done by the US this very same objectioner would speak highly about US and would praise the US action to the glory !!!!!!!!!BRAVO INDIA & INDIAN NAVY!!!! -Sanjay Sawant - Mumbai
INDIAN NAVY SHOULD GIVE ANSWER TO THIS UNDESIRABLE QUESTIONS BY SINKING MORE PIRATES SHIP/BOATS VERY SOON IN SOMALI COASTLONG LIVE INDIAN NAVYCHEERS!! -Lakshmy - New Delhi
It is an attempt to malign the Indian Naval Force This issue should be taken seriously and put to investigation by like minded countries at international level -kulkarni. S. R - Ghaziabad
Once again the Western press wants to malign an Indian acheivement One would like to know what was the trawler doing in the midst of pirate speed boats in pirate infested waters, which is certainly not a place for fishing And what was the cause of the huge explosion on the ship Could be that the Thai owner was in cahoots with the pirates and had leased the trawler to the pirates as a reconnaissance vessel to spy on ships and choose the most easy target to pirate Farhang -Farhang - UAE
The Indian Navy, however, stuck to its guns, saying that its stealth frigate INS Tabar patrolling the region sunk the vessel in retaliatory fire after it was first fired upon Nov 18.
The huge fireball that erupted from the vessel after INS Tabar hit it action clearly proved that a large amount of ammunition was on board, Indian Navy spokesman Commander Nirad Sinha maintained.
Wicharn Sirichaiekawat, the owner of the Ekawat Nava 5, however, had a different story to tell.
He told an Indian TV news channel that the vessel was bound from Oman to Yemen to deliver fishing equipment when it was boarded by pirates near the Somali coast.
According to Wicharn, the pirates were taking control of the ship when the INS Tabar arrived on the scene and engaged in combat after being fired upon.
He claimed that 14 sailors were still missing and one crewmember was killed in the INS Tabar assault.
Wicharn said he heard about the incident from a Cambodian crew member who survived and drifted in the ocean for six days before being rescued by a passing vessel and was now recuperating in a hospital in Yemen.
Commander Sinha would have none of this.
"The Indian Navy's stand is very clear. We were first fired upon and then we fired back in self-defence. The vessel was laden with a large quantity of ammunition as shown by the pictures (of the incident)," Sinha told reporters.
"Gun-totting pirates threatened to blow us up in international waters. So, this is an involvement in an act of piracy and we acted in self-defence," he added.
The Indian Navy earned tremendous accolades after the incident. It also said it had received informal clearance from the government to conduct "hot pursuit" raids against Somali pirates if the situation warranted.
The navy said it would beef up its presence in the region by despatching a guided missile destroyer and was even contemplating aerial reconnaissance flights in the area.
IANS
Your comment(s) on this article
This is obviously a story cooked up by Pakistani ISI, the same forces who blew up our embassy in Afghanistan, because Pakistan cannot bear any strategic advantage to India India must push into the Gulf region with greater force and help get rid of the Jihadi forces in Somalia Is our UPA government up to it? -K.Venugopal - Mumbai
Well done indian Navy our forces need to act swiftly if the situation arise thus sending a clear message to the adventursists and thugs that they would n`t be spared to carry out thier illegal acts Alim Khan -Mohamed Alim Khan - Dubai
I dont think the Indian Navy is answerable to anybodyThe action taken is quite appropriate in this situationPerhaps the objection is raised or all this hue n cry is made only to malign the Navy for such a bold action and in attempt to redicule the Navy If this was done by the US this very same objectioner would speak highly about US and would praise the US action to the glory !!!!!!!!!BRAVO INDIA & INDIAN NAVY!!!! -Sanjay Sawant - Mumbai
INDIAN NAVY SHOULD GIVE ANSWER TO THIS UNDESIRABLE QUESTIONS BY SINKING MORE PIRATES SHIP/BOATS VERY SOON IN SOMALI COASTLONG LIVE INDIAN NAVYCHEERS!! -Lakshmy - New Delhi
It is an attempt to malign the Indian Naval Force This issue should be taken seriously and put to investigation by like minded countries at international level -kulkarni. S. R - Ghaziabad
Once again the Western press wants to malign an Indian acheivement One would like to know what was the trawler doing in the midst of pirate speed boats in pirate infested waters, which is certainly not a place for fishing And what was the cause of the huge explosion on the ship Could be that the Thai owner was in cahoots with the pirates and had leased the trawler to the pirates as a reconnaissance vessel to spy on ships and choose the most easy target to pirate Farhang -Farhang - UAE
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