After pirate attack, ship with Turkish crew at port in Gabon

A cargo ship with a largely Turkish crew that was attacked off Nigeria on Jan. 23 is now anchored off neighboring Gabon, and the body of a slain Azerbaijani sailor is due to be brought to shore, according to Turkish officials.

The Liberian-flagged cargo ship Mozart anchored at Port-Gentil at 11 a.m. (0800GMT), said Turkish Transport and Infrastructure Minister Adil Karaismailoğlu on Twitter on Jan. 24.

Turkey's Maritime Directorate said the crew initially locked themselves in a safe area but the pirates forced entry after six hours. During the struggle, one crew member aboard the M/V Mozart died.

Turkish media identified the victim as engineer Farman Ismayilov of Azerbaijan, the only non-Turkish crew member.

After taking most of the crew on Jan. 23, the pirates left the ship in the Gulf of Guinea with three sailors aboard, state-run Anadolu Agency said. The vessel is currently at Gabon's Port-Gentil.

Ankara working for sailors' safe return

Turkey launched diplomatic efforts to find crew members that were kidnapped after a pirate attack on a Turkish cargo ship off Nigeria, according to diplomatic sources.

Speaking to private broadcaster NTV, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said Turkey has begun initiatives for the safe return of its citizens from the pirates.

"These thugs, pirates who kidnapped our citizens have not yet contacted us," he explained.

He added: "There have been attacks on our ships and other countries' ships before. They call after a certain time and make their demands. But all kinds of preparation and work have been done." 

Earlier, Çavuşoğlu spoke to Osman Levent Karsan, the operator of the company that owns the ship and conveyed his condolences, emphasizing...