A rare attack on a cable-layer owned by a South Korean owner has been reported in the Red Sea.
The International Maritime Bureau Piracy Reporting Centre (IMB PRC) said 16 pirates in two skiffs armed with AK 47s and RPGs fired on the ship last Friday, while it was installing cables at 0.5 knots.
TradeWinds understands the vessel under attack was the 6,204-gt Responder (built 2000).
The armed security team onboard fired back and managed to force the pirates away.
In the meantime, non-essential crew had retreated to the citadel.
The IMB PRC said it had not seen such an attack for a very long time.
KT Submarine, a subsidiary established by Korean telecommunications company Korea Telecom, is the owner of the vessel.
The company has taken part in cable laying projects all over the world.
The vessel's last reported position is South East Asia in early July.
It was previously owned by the Maersk Group and was operating under the name Maersk Responder.
