Pirates abduct 17 Indian sailors off African coast

MUMBAI: Suspected Somali pirates today abducted seventeen Indian and five Italian sailors after taking over an Italian-flagged vessel off the African coast.

The oil tanker 'Savina Caylyn' was taken over by the pirates at 0520 hours IST with a total of 22 crew members on board, a senior official at the Directorate General of Shipping told PTI.

Those abducted include 17 Indian and 5 Italian nationals, the official said, adding the DGS will be coming out with more details later.

The strike by the pirates comes within two days of the arrest of 24 sea brigands by Indian authorities off the coast of Lakshadweep.