1 killed as Vietnamese vessel attacked by pirates near Philippines

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A Vietnamese was fatally shot after armed pirates attacked his cargo vessel and abducted six other crew members off the coast of the Philippines on Sunday night.

The remaining 10 crew members were left on the adrift vessel.

The operator of the Giang Hai ship said it was carrying cement from Indonesia and was attacked at around 6 p.m. on Sunday near the Sulu Archipelago to the southwest of the Philippines.

The pirates damaged the boat and let it drift, shot Vu Duc Hanh, 21, from the northern city of Hai Phong, before they left with six other crew members including the captain.

An official from Vietnam’s transport ministry said a Vietnamese cargo vessel in the area has reached the ship and towed it to a Malaysian port. Filipino police have started an investigation.

There has been no update on the abductees.

Vietnamese authorities plan to seek help from the Filipino government to demand the release of the crew members.

Last November, six Vietnamese men were abducted from a cargo ship off the Philippines by Abu Sayyaf militants, a notorious group equipped with modern weapons, communications equipment and high-powered boats. The group has raked in millions of dollars in ransoms over the past 15 years.

The abduction happened just two weeks after Somali pirates freed 26 hostages, including three Vietnamese fishermen, after holding them for four years.

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