via BBC News
Four Americans sailing on a yacht off the coast of Oman have been taken hostage by Somali pirates, an international maritime watchdog says.
The S/V Quest, owned by a retired couple, was hijacked 240 nautical miles (275 miles) off Oman on Friday afternoon, Ecoterra told BBC News.
It is believed the yacht was en route from India to Oman.
While pirates usually attack cargo ships, they have hijacked a number of yachts in recent years.
Ecoterra said the capture of the S/V Quest had been reported by both its sources and by Nato’s anti-piracy operation, Ocean Shield. Nato could not be reached immediately for comment.
Jean and Scott Adam, the yacht’s owners, have been sailing it around the world since 2002, according to their website.
The couple wrote on the site that they had taken on two new crew members last year.
Mapping out their sailing plans for this year, they said they planned to sail from Sri Lanka to Crete in the Mediterranean, via the Suez Canal, making stops in India, Oman and Djibouti.
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Article courtesy bbc.co.uk
