EU forces free crew from tanker seized by Somali pirates

The Hellas Aphrodite crew have been freed from armed Somali pirates who seized it the previous day.

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The Hellas Aphrodite, carrying petrol from India to South Africa, was seized on Thursday when armed pirates opened fire with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades before boarding the vessel.

The crew locked themselves inside a fortified citadel while the attackers took control of the ship.

A Spanish warship, the ESPS Victoria, operating under the EU's anti-piracy mission Operation Atalanta, reached the tanker on Friday afternoon. Special forces boarded the vessel and found all 24 crew members unharmed.

"The crew is safe and no injuries have been reported. Throughout the incident, they remained in the citadel in direct contact with Atalanta," the EU mission said, adding that a "show of force" had prompted the pirates to abandon the ship before the warship arrived.