Five Vietnamese sailors were among the crewmen of a fishing vessel of Taiwan, China, who escaped from Somali pirates after it was hijacked in the Indian Ocean archipelago of the Seychelles, the Taiwan External Affairs Department said on Nov. 6.

The Chin Yi Wen with a crew of 28, including nine Chinese, eight Filipinos, six Indonesians and five Vietnamese, was attacked on Nov. 4.

According to a spokesman for Taiwan’s Fisheries Agency, the crew managed to overwhelm the six armed pirates and retake control of their ship. This is the first time sailors of a fishing vessel hijacked
by Somali pirates have freed themselves on their own, he said.

The Somali pirates fell into the sea and three sailors on the Chin Yi Wen were slightly injured, he added.

The ship is heading for Victoria port of the Seychelles./.