West African consultancy Praesidium International said its team had made contact with the master of the vessel, who reported that the vessel was struck by a speedboat with up to eight people onboard.

The ship and crew are free, and the vessel heads to its next destination, Moracco.

There hasn't been much pirate activity in the region where the attack took place, and according to Dryad, this is the first such incident to occur in 2020. Many attacks were reported further west over the preceding few days.

“It is assessed that incidents in this area have been perpetuated by the relative absence of formalised security presence throughout the area. Perpetrators operating within this area have relative freedom of movement to conduct operations against vulnerable vessels. International Maritime response has improved recently with the Portuguese Navy establishing a semi-permanent presence out of Santo Antonio, however, security coverage of the area remains limited,” Dryad said.

Maritime Business World