6 Vietnamese sailors kidnapped by Philippine terrorists

Early on the morning of November 11, a group of armed men, suspected to be the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group, attacked a Vietnamese cargo ship off the coast of Basilan province (Philippines), kidnapping six Vietnamese sailors. Vietnamese authorities have stepped in.

Photo on Facebook of the ship MV Royale 16.

Rappler (Philippines) quoted information from the Philippine Coast Guard as saying that a group of 10 attackers boarded the MV Royale 16 while it was near Sibago Island. The group injured one sailor and kidnapped six Vietnamese. It is not yet clear where they took the kidnapped people.

Mr. Do Tuan Anh, Head of the Citizen Protection Department, Consular Department (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam) said that the Consular Department has received the information and has contacted the Vietnamese Embassy in the Philippines, the Search and Rescue Committee, and the Maritime Administration to urgently verify the company that owns the attacked ship, its itinerary, the cargo transported, and the number of crew members on board.

The Consular Department is also coordinating with the Embassy to contact Philippine authorities to search for the kidnapped sailors.

The Vietnamese ship that was attacked by terrorists and kidnapped off the coast of the Philippines was a general cargo ship of Quy Sang Shipping Company (Diem Dien town, Thai Thuy, Thai Binh).

When attacked, there were 19 crew members on board, and later six were kidnapped, including the captain and first mate of the ship.

The Mindanao Examiner newspaper's 1:30 p.m. update this afternoon, November 11, said that the Abu Sayyaf Islamic rebel group is believed to have attacked and kidnapped the crew of the MV Royale 16.

According to Mindanao Examiner, the captain of the MV Royal 16 was also among the six kidnapped.

Basilan is one of five provinces in the autonomous region of Muslim Mindanao in the southern Philippines.

The attackers are said to have approached the MV Royal 16 by speedboat and quickly climbed onto the deck and subdued the sailors.

According to some shipping information websites, MV Royal 16 is a cargo ship flying the Vietnamese flag and registered in Hai Phong. The Facebook page named MV Royal also chose the MV Royal 16 as its profile picture.

According to the Inquirer newspaper (Philippines), after receiving the news, the Philippine Coast Guard ordered the nearby cargo ship MV Lorcon Iloilo to come to the rescue.

Mindanao Examiner newspaper reported that sailors on the MV Lorcon Iloilo (Philippine nationality) provided first aid to injured sailors on the MV Royal 16.

Mujiv Hataman, governor of the autonomous region of Muslim Mindanao, said he was still gathering more official information about the attack.

About 10 days ago, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte mentioned joint patrols to combat piracy and hostage-taking for ransom.

According to the Philippine Inquirer newspaper on November 3, President Duterte is urging Malaysia and Indonesia to join the Philippines in joint sea patrols to combat piracy, hostage-taking and other maritime crimes in the three countries' shared waters.

He said he wanted to discuss the issue with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak during his official visit to the capital Kuala Lumpur.

“We have a lot to discuss with each other about piracy in the Strait of Malacca. Hostage-taking and other crimes are on the rise in this area,” the Philippine leader told reporters in Davao City earlier this month.

According to Tuoi Tre