Pirates hijack oil tanker in Gulf of Aden

Pirates in two skiffs fired rocket-propelled grenades and guns at an oil tanker off East Africa before boarding the vessel and hijacking it.

The United Arab Emirates-flagged Zirku was travelling from Sudan to Singapore when it was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden, the EU Naval Force said.

There was no information on the crew of 29. Previous tankers hijacked by pirates were carrying oil valued in the region of US$150 million ($200 million).