By IRNA,
Tehran : Iran on Monday affirmed national resolve to confront Somali pirates who have hijacked Iranian leased cargo ship.
Foreign Ministry spokesman, Hassan Qashqavi, confirmed that Iran has sent a warship to the Gulf of Aden.
“Tehran is determined to confront the prevalent phenomenon of piracy in the area.”
An Iranian-leased cargo ship ‘Delight’ was hijacked in the Indian Ocean on November 19 off Somalia located in eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, east of Ethiopia.
The ship was carrying wheat to Iran with 25 crew on board from Iran, the Philippines, India, Pakistan and Ghana.
“Following the recent moves of the pirates and the mounting insecurity in that international waterway, Iran decided, based on the resolutions adopted by the United Nations Security Council, to send its warship to the region in order to act in cooperation with the international community to safeguard ships safe passage in the open seas,” Qashqavi said.
Speaking to reporters at his weekly press conference, he added that Iran would decisively act to free the Iranian ship.