Somali Pirates Capture Hyundai and Kia Transport

Being a pirate was probably every boy’s dream at some point, especially as Johnny Deep presents a rather cheerful and adventurous perspective of the outlaw life in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” series. But the times of legendary pirates like Blackbeard are gone.

Nowadays terror has a different form, that of Somali pirates capturing ships in the Gulf of Aden. The last ship captured by the pirates on January 1 carried on board 2,388 cars from Hyundai and Kia, says bloomberg. Despite the capture of the vessel, Hyundai Motor Co and Kia Motors Corp don’t expect any losses.

“As soon as the vessel embarks, all risks related to the vessel are the responsibility of the distributor,” Hyundai said in an e-mailed response to queries. “All payments for the cars have been made, while the cars are also insured.”

The car ship is called Asian Glory and is operated by Eukor Car Carriers Inc. The vessel left Ulsan and was heading to Saudi Arabia. Asian Glory, owned by Zodiac Maritime Agencies Ltd, has a crew of 25 members, including 8 Bulgarians, 5 Indians and 2 Romanians. It was hijacked 1,000 kilometers off the coast of Somalia.

The problems with the Somali pirates are getting more and more serious. At this point, 20 warships from the EU, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and other countries patrol off Somalia, the Gulf of Aden and the Suez Canal.

Alongside Hyundai and Kia, we all wish the safe return of the crew.