Somalia maritime police from PMPF patrol in the Gulf of Aden off the coast of  Puntland State in Somalia, Nov 26, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)

COLOMBO - Sri Lanka's fisheries department said on Saturday that a Sri Lankan fishing trawler, with six crew members onboard, has been taken by Somali pirates.

Susantha Kahawatta, director general of the Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, told the media that the boat was taken in the Arabian Sea.

The multi-day fishing trawler Lorenzo Putha-4 set sail from Sri Lanka on January 12, and the vessel was taken around 1,160 nautical miles away from the Sri Lankan maritime boundary, said Kahawatta.

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Sri Lankan authorities do not have any contact with the vessel and the information they have was obtained from other vessels nearby, he said, adding that the Sri Lankan government is taking steps to secure the release of the abducted fishermen.