MANILA, Philippines – Somali pirates have freed a Japanese-operated bulk carrier with 21 Filipino crewmen they seized in October, the third ship to be released in a week, Philippine officials said Tuesday. Vice President Noli de Castro confirmed that the African Sanderling and its all-Filipino crew were released Monday. The ship was headed to Oman where the crew was to be debriefed before flying home, said De Castro, the presidential adviser on overseas Filipino workers. "Everybody is safe," he added, citing a report by the company that hired the sailors.
The Panamanian-flagged and South Korean-owned ship was seized while en route to Asia from the Middle East. more..http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090113/ap_on_re_af/piracy
China claims to escort Taiwanese ship in Gulf of Aden
Chinese news agency Xinhua is reporting that Chinese naval vessels escorted a Taiwanese ship belonging to Formosa Plastics Marine Corp. Monday to protect it against pirate attacks in the Gulf of Aden.
Taiwan's government said it has not consulted with China about this matter, and said that the ship is now on lease to Koreans. Taiwan's Vice Transportation Minister Yo Fang-lai said that he heard Sunday that the ship was going to pass through the Gulf of Aden, but was uncertain who would escort it.
Yo said, "There are many channels of aid, including Europe and American. We have a good long-term cooperation with the US in fighting terrorism. We have heard that there are 45 ships, including ships from Europe and America that are protecting ships there. We have contacted the US and Europe, and we do not rule out any possibility in the case of an emergency."more..http://english.rti.org.tw/Content/GetSingleNews.aspx?ContentID=71749
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