Ten gunmen boarded a cargo ship and seized six of its crew off Basilan province early Friday.
One crewman was shot and wounded by the raiders, the Coast Guard said.
Jerome Cayabyab, Zamboanga Coast Guard Station commander, said the incident could have taken place at dawn but was reported to the station around 7 a.m. by the captain of the M/V Lorcon-Ilo-ilo that provided assistance to the Vietnam-flagged ship, M/V Royal 16.
The Coast Guard headquarters in Manila had not confirmed who the gunmen were, but the Abu Sayyaf has been known to seize hostages from vessels in the waters around Basilan and Zamboanga.
It said it was coordinating with other law enforcement agencies for an operation to rescue the six crewmen.
The Lorcon (Lorenzo Container)-Ilo-ilo was sailing near Sibago Island in Basilan when it spotted the Royal 16.
The Lorcon-Ilo-ilo brought one of the Royal 16’s crew, identified as Dham Yan Trong, an electrician, ashore for treatment at a hospital.
Trong, who had a bullet wound in the right arm, was accompanied to the hospital by Lai Minh Khao, the ship’s fourth engineer.
“The gunmen shot him (Trong) when he ran as they were about to take him,” Cayabyab said based on information from Khao.
Cayabyab said they have yet to establish the identities of the abducted crew included the captain, chief mate, second officer, third officer, bosun (boatswain), and a seaman.
He said the ship’s point of origin and destination and the cargo it carried cannot be ascertained because Dham did not speak English.
“We have yet to board the vessel (M/V Royal 16) to get the other details,” he said.
A vessel of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) manned by coast guards was assigned to escort the Royal 16 to the port of Zamboanga City.
The post Gunmen Seize Cargo Ship in Basilan, Take 6 Hostages appeared first on Manila Bulletin
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