NAIROBI - Somalia pirates have hijacked a St. Vincent and Grenadines flagged cargo ship in the Indian Ocean waters near Seychelles with 23 Chinese crew members aboard, a regional maritime official confirmed on Sunday.

Andrew Mwangura, the East African coordinator of Seafarers Assistance program (SAP), said that MV Rak Afrikana was hijacked early Sunday approximately 280 nautical miles west of Seychelles.

"All the crew members in the Rak Afrikana are 23, all Chinese," Mwangura told Xinhua by telephone from Mombasa.