Russian warship rescues hijacked tanker

The fortunes of a band of Somali pirates quickly changed Thursday when a Russian warship opened fire on a hijacked oil tanker, freeing the crew and arresting the bandits, who a day earlier had raced across the Indian Ocean to seize a cargo valued at more than $50 million.

The high-seas battle unfolded after 23 crewmen on the tanker Moscow University sent out a distress call and hid from the pirates in a sealed rudder compartment. A Russian destroyer closed in and special forces stormed the vessel at dawn, after marauders shot at a surveillance helicopter, according to the anti-piracy European Union Naval Force.

“The Russian warship, knowing the crew was locked down and safe, returned fire on the pirates,” said a statement released by the force. “Eventually the pirates surrendered and a boarding team from the [warship] Marshal Shaposhnikov arrived onboard the tanker, captured all the pirates and freed the crew. All the crew are safe and well.”

Russia’s state-run RIA Novosti news service reported that one pirate was killed and 10 were arrested.

The rescue operation ended an ordeal less than 24 hours after pirates seized the 106,474-ton tanker about 350 miles off the Yemeni Island of Socotra. The vessel, owned by Novorossiysk Shipping Co. and carrying 86,000 tons of crude oil, was bound for China from Sudan, catching the attention of pirates who have expanded their hunting territory hundreds of miles from the Yemeni and Somali coasts.

The Marshal Shaposhnikov, an anti-submarine destroyer, was part of a fleet of international warships protecting oil tankers and cargo ships in the vital shipping lanes of the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden. The effort has prevented a number of attacks. In February, Danish special forces foiled the hijacking of a merchant ship, and this week a Greek warship fired its gun and arrested seven bandits in a speed boat off the Yemeni shore.

Novorossiysk Shipping Co. credited the tanker’s captain and the quick response by the Russian navy.

“Thanks to the skillful and timely action of Capt. Yury Tulchinsky, the pirates were unable to take a single hostage or command the ship,” the company said. “The personnel of the Marshal Shaposhnikov performed their duties in the best traditions of Russian sailors.”

The response by the Marshal Shaposhnikov was reminiscent of the 2009 operation in which U.S. Navy snipers shot and killed three pirates, freeing the captain of the container ship Maersk Alabama.

Pirate attacks have jeopardized the crossroads of the Middle East and the Horn of Africa. Sea bandits have become increasingly brazen, especially since the U.S.-backed Somali government has been unable to control a country racked by crime, ethnic conflicts and Islamic insurgencies.

Maritime authorities estimate pirates have attacked hundreds of ships in recent years and have negotiated ransoms totaling between $100 million and $200 million. Pirates are believed to be holding about 350 hostages and as many as 20 vessels, including a South Korean tanker captured in April.

jeffrey.fleishman@latimes.com