World Brief

A Greece-owned chemical tanker was hijacked by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden. It had a crew of 21 Filipinos and an unarmed security expert, according to the Somalia Report.

The Report, citing maritime officials, said that the MT Liquid Velvet, flying the Marshall Islands flag, was taken on Monday. It said the 11,599 DWT ship is owned by the Greek company Elmira Tankers.

A pirate named Khalif who heard about the hijacking told Reuters, “We had alarm calls of a hijacking … from our friends. They told us they have boarded a tanker ship but we didn’t get further details from them.”

Pirates operating in the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden are said to cost the world economy $12 billion per year, according to anti-piracy group Save Our Seafarers.

The International Maritime Bureau said that while pirates have increased the number of attacks on vessels in 2011, the number of successful hijackings is actually lower than last year’s figures.

The Somali pirates are said to have inspired copycats in Africa, as bands of seafaring hijackers have attacked ships in the Gulf of Guinea, near Benin and Nigeria.

U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron announced several days ago that Britain-flagged ships can have armed guards on board to protect against pirates.