South African aboard ship where 7 seamen were kidnapped, says Equatorial Guinea

Seven crew members aboard a supply ship for the oil industry in Equatorial Guinea were kidnapped when "pirates" attacked their vessel, the oil and gas ministry said in a statement on Friday.

The US oil giant Exxonmobil reported that the supply ship Warden, which it was chartering from the oil services firm Swire, was attacked on Wednesday in the country's territorial waters, it said.

The 15-member crew comprised nationals from South Africa, the Philippines, Serbia and Cameroon.

According to AFP, eight colleagues hid, while the other seven were kidnapped. It is unclear if the South African national was one of those kidnapped.