• Indian Navy’s warship INS Kolkata captured 35 Somalian pirates after a 40-hour operation.
• The operation resulted in the safe evacuation of 17 crew members from the pirate vessel, Ruen.
• The ex-MV Ruen, which Somali pirates had hijacked in December 2023.

On Sunday, a Mumbai court remanded the 35 Somalian pirates apprehended by the Indian Navy to 10 days of police custody. The Indian Navy’s warship INS Kolkata captured the pirates after conducting a 40-hour-long operation that began on March 15.

The Indian Navy stated in an official statement that the Indian warship INS Kolkata successfully cornered and coerced all 35 pirates to surrender on March 16, ensuring the safe evacuation of 17 crew members from the pirate vessel without any injury.

In the rescue operation, INS Kolkata intercepted the under-attack pirate ship, Ruen, sailing almost 2600km from the shores of the Indian Coast, and forced the pirate ship to stop through calibrated actions.

During the action to safely rescue the crew members and take full control of the distressed vessel, the Indian Navy operation received support from the Indian warship INS Subhadra, High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE RPA) drones, P8I maritime patrol aircraft, and MARCOS PRAHARs airdropped by C-17 aircraft.

Previously, the Indian Navy had informed about the ongoing rescue operation to evacuate crew members onboard a distressed vessel.

In its statement, the Navy reported that the ex-MV Ruen, which Somali pirates had commandeered on December 14, 2023, reappeared as a pirate vessel, posing a threat to merchant shipping in the high seas. In response to the threat, an Indian Navy warship swiftly engaged the pirate vessel.

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