(CNN) -- Pirates hijacked a cargo ship off the coast of Somalia on Monday, a European Union naval task force said.
The MV Suez was carrying cement and sailing under a Panamanian flag when it reported that pirates were attacking with small arms fire, the European Union Naval Force Somalia said in a statement.
Minutes later, people on the ship reported that pirates were on board, the statement said.
The Suez is a 17,300-ton vessel with a crew of 23.
The hijacking happened in the Gulf of Aden, a waterway between Somalia and Yemen that has been the site of numerous pirate attacks on merchant vessels.
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