A Turkish cargo ship was attacked by pirates off the coast Guinea late Saturday during which 15 sailors were kidnapped and one Azerbaijani sailor was killed.
The ship, named M/V Mozart, which was traveling from Lagos to Cape Town, was sailing 100 sea miles northwest of the African island country Sao Tome when the Nigerian pirates boarded the ship. According to first reports, 15 out of 19 sailors were kidnapped. Farman Ismayılov, an Azerbaijani engineer, was killed.
It was reported that the Nigerian pirates are waiting for negotiations for ransom.
Kidnappings and piracy for ransom in Nigeria and the Gulf of Guinea are common. A similar attack occurred in 2019 when a Turkish cargo ship was attacked by Nigerian pirates, and 10 sailors, all Turkish nationals, were taken hostage for ransom. Later, all sailors were released.
