The Japanese tugboat Idaten which was attacked by armed pirates in Malaysian territorial waters

The International Maritime Bureau said the incident took place in the Malacca Strait. Japan asked Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore for help in rescuing them, the Japan Coast Guard said.

The coast guard said the 323-ton tugboat Idaten is owned by Kondo Kaiji, a shipping company in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture. Eight of the 14 crew members aboard are Japanese, it said.

The coast guard identified the kidnapped Japanese nationals as the captain, Nobuo Inoue, 56, and the chief engineer, Shunji Kuroda, 50.

Idaten crew members said that more than 10 pirates armed with rocket launchers attacked their 42.55-meter vessel.

The Japan Times Weekly: March 19, 2005
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