Like in movies: Pirates attack Turkish ship, take crew hostage

Although they seem to be a history of the past, pirates exist today, and they are equally dangerous. Turkish authorities have confirmed that a Turkish-owned ship has been taken hostage by several pirates in the vicinity of the island of Sao Tome, West Africa.

The merchant ship had left Nigeria and was addressing South Africa when it was surrounded by vehicles of armed pirates. According to the crew's radio accounts, about 15 people have endured hours and were then handed over to pirates who killed a member of the crew, an engineer from Azerbaijan.

The site of the attack, in Guinea Bay, between Cameroon, Nigeria, Guinea, and Togo, is described as the most dangerous place in the world for pirate attacks.

Turkish authorities have been engaged since the beginning of the event, with President Erdogan speaking personally to some of the crew members. “We hope to see them free, we're trying, we should pray for them”, it was his words.

The ship is already heading towards Gabon, but pirates do not respond to the demands of the authorities involved.

In June 2019, another Turkish ship was seized in the Nigerian waters, and 10 sailors were released just a month later.