Five Korean Crew Members Abducted Near Ghana Waters... Ministry of Foreign Affairs Forms Overseas Citizens Protection Task Force

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] A vessel carrying five Korean crew members was attacked by armed assailants and abducted off the coast of the port of Cotonou in the Republic of Benin, West Africa.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the 25th, at around 3:30 PM local time on the 24th, six crew members, including five Koreans and one Ghanaian, aboard the 994-ton Ghanaian tuna fishing vessel PANOFI FRONTIER, operating 111.1 km south of Benin in West Africa, were abducted.

An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, "Six people, including five Korean nationals and one Ghanaian national, were abducted by unidentified kidnappers," adding, "The identity and whereabouts of the kidnappers are currently unknown."

The vessel had a total of 30 crew members on board, but except for the six abducted, the remaining 24 Ghanaian crew members are reported to be returning to Ghana aboard the PANOFI FRONTIER.

As the safety of the Korean crew members has not yet been confirmed, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has established a Task Force for the Protection of Overseas Nationals. An official from the Ministry said, "The Ministry has formed a Task Force for the Protection of Overseas Nationals and emergency response teams at diplomatic missions. We will do our best to secure the prompt release of our nationals through close cooperation with domestic agencies and the host country's authorities."

According to information released on the website of Dryad Global, a UK-based maritime safety information provider, armed assailants on a speedboat attacked the fishing vessel PANOFI FRONTIER south of the port of Cotonou, Benin.

The assailants boarded the fishing vessel and left the boat carrying five Koreans and one Ghanaian behind. The speedboat fled eastward toward Nigerian waters. Dryad Global reported, "This is the seventh incident in the Cotonou waters this year."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.