In a daring operation, the Indian Navy’s elite Marine Commandos (MARCOS) thwarted a hijacking attempt in the North Arabian Sea on Friday. The MARCOS unit boarded the Liberia-flagged vessel, MV Lila Norfolk, and successfully rescued its crew of 21, including 15 Indians, after conducting “sanitisation” operations.
The Indian Navy’s warship, INS Chennai, deployed on an anti-piracy patrol, intercepted the MV Lila Norfolk at 3:15 pm on Friday. The merchant vessel had earlier transmitted a distress message via the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) portal, reporting that it had been boarded by five to six unknown armed individuals the previous evening.
In a statement, the Navy said, “Indian Navy’s Swift Response to the Hijacking Attempt of MV Lila Norfolk in the North Arabian Sea. All 21 crew (including 15 Indians) onboard safely evacuated from the citadel. Sanitisation by MARCOs has confirmed absence of the hijackers. The attempt of hijacking by the pirates was probably abandoned with the forceful warning by the Indian Navy MPA of interception by Indian Naval warship.”
The statement further added, the crew, who had sought refuge within the citadel of the vessel (a designated safe area on a ship in case of a hijacking), was further safely evacuated. Significantly, continuous surveillance of the merchant vessel had been conducted using P-8I maritime patrol aircraft, Predator MQ9B UAVs, and shipborne helicopters before the MARCOS personnel boarded the vessel to commence sanitisation operations.
Meanwhile, the overall situation was closely monitored in coordination with other relevant agencies in the area.
