The MV ''Sinar Kudus'' hijacking was a maritime event that began on 16 March 2011 with four pirates in the Indian Ocean seizing the cargo ship MV ''Sinar Kudus'' east of Somali coast. The siege ended after a rescue effort by the

Indonesian Navy The Indonesian Navy ( id, Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Laut, , Indonesian National Military-Naval Force, TNI-AL) is the naval branch of the Indonesian National Armed Forces. It was founded on 10 September 1945 and has a role to patrol ...

on 1 May 2011. It was the first pirate seizure of an Indonesian merchant ship off the Somali coast.

Background

On 16 March 2011, an Indonesian merchant ship, MV ''Sinar Kudus'', was carrying nickel ore from South Sulawesi to

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...

when it was hijacked by Somali pirates in the

Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...

. After negotiations, the ship owner agreed to a ransom demand and restored the ship and crew to Indonesian authorities. It was then hijacked a second time by another group of pirates; after signalling "mayday" the ship's crew were supported by a group of

Denjaka Denjaka (abbreviation from ''Detasemen Jala Mangkara''; Jala Mangkara Detachment) is a counter-terrorism special operations force of the Indonesian Navy. It is a combined detachment formed from selected personnel of the Navy's frogmen unit ( KOP ...

and

Kopassus The Kopassus ( id, Komando Pasukan Khusus, Special Forces Command) is an Indonesian Army (TNI-AD) special forces group that conducts special operations missions for the Indonesian government, such as direct action, unconventional warfare, sabot ...

from KRI ''Abdul Halim Perdanakusuma'' which secured the ship. A further group of Denjaka and Kopassus were deployed using a Bo 105 helicopter to strafe the pirates, all of whom were killed. There were plans and preparations for an amphibious landing on Somalia by the Indonesian commanders if the hostages had been brought ashore, but as the hostages and ship were rescued at sea, the plan was not executed.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sinar Kudus hijacking 2011 in Indonesia 2011 in military history 2011 in Somalia Hijacking Indonesian Navy Maritime incidents in 2011 Military operations involving Indonesia Piracy in Somalia