cargo ship carrying 16 Polish nationals has been hijacked by Nigerian pirates

Poland's Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski said
on Friday that a Polish cargo ship under the Cyprus
flag was attacked off the coast of Nigeria by pirates,
who kidnapped five members of the crew, including
the captain and officers, Reuters reports.

"The rest of the crew, 11 people, are still on the ship
and they are safe... The ship suffered some damages,"
Waszczykowski told a news conference.

The ship, named Szafir (Sapphire), had been sailing
from the Belgian port of Antwerp to Nigeria,and it
belongs to Polish company Euroafrica, based in
Szczecin, north western Poland.

The ship is currently anchored around 30 sea miles off
the Nigerian coast. The Kidnappers have not made any
demands yet.