Missing Russian vessel hijacked, 8 people arrested: defense minister
14:49, 18 August 2009
BAKU. August 18. KAZINFORM The missing Russian vessel Arctic Sea was hijacked by group of Estonians, Latvians and Russians, and was freed by the Russian Navy, the Russian defense chief said on Tuesday; Kazinform cites Trend News.
The Russian Navy has arrested eight people in connection with the hijacking, and the crew was rescued without a single shot, Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov was quoted by news agencies as saying, Xinhua reported.
The Maltese-flagged Arctic Sea set off from Finland on July 23 carrying a large load of timber, and was due to arrive at the Algerian port of Bejaia on Aug. 4.
Contact with the vessel was disrupted on July 28, after masked men claiming to be police briefly seized the ship in the Baltic Sea on July 24, media reports said; Kazinform has learnt from Trend News.
See www.en.trend.az for full version.