Early on the morning of 8 September, the Merchant Vessel (MV) OLIB G, flagged Malta, was pirated in the East part of the Gulf of Aden.

After report from a merchant vessel that a skiff was approaching MV OLIB G, and after several unsuccessful attempts to make contact with the vessel, the USS PRINCETON warship of Task Force 151 launched its helicopter. The helicopter was able to identify two pirates on board MV OLIB G.

The MV OLIB G was sailing West in the Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor through the Gulf of Aden with a cargo of ballast. The MV OLIB G, deadweight 6,375 tons, has a crew of 18, among which are 15 Georgian and 3 Turkish.

The Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC) is an area in which EU NAVFOR (Task Force 465), NATO (Task Force 508) and Combined Maritime Force (Task Force 151) coordinate the patrol of maritime transits.

EU NAVFOR Somalia - Operation ATALANTA's main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid of the World Food Programme (WFP) and vessels of African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM and to protect vulnerable vessels in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean and to deter and disrupt piracy. EU NAVFOR also monitors fishing activity off the coast of Somalia.