Seoul/Singapore - Pirates attacked a
South Korean-flagged cargo ship in the South China Sea early on
Monday, stealing thousands of dollars in cash and even the
sailors' shoes, South Korean authorities said.
Two people sustained minor injuries when seven pirates
boarded the CK Bluebell and made off with $13,000 and belongings
including mobile phones, clothes and shoes from the 22-strong
crew, officials from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said.
The incident took place near the Singapore Strait, a busy
sea lane that runs past Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, the
Yonhap news agency reported.
Piracy in the strategic shipping route has been less common
in recent years due to heavier policing.
The dry bulk vessel CK Bluebell set sail from its anchorage
off Singapore late on Saturday afternoon, heading northeast for
South Korea's Incheon port, according to Refinitiv Eikon ship
tracking data.
Singapore police, who manage the island nation's coastguard,
and the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore did not comment
immediately on the incident.
Korean officials said the ship was sailing normally after
the robbery.
This month, China’s Ministry of Transport raised its
security recommendation for Chinese vessels in the nearby
Malacca Strait, between the Malay Peninsula and the Indonesian
island of Sumatra.
A Chinese official declined to specify the reason for the
new security level, saying only that the decision was the result
of comprehensive research taking all factors into account.