LONDON, Nov 19 (Reuters) - Somali pirates hijacked a Japanese operated combined chemical and oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden on Saturday, the International Maritime Bureau said.

Few details were given on the piracy watchdog's website about the attack, but shipping newspaper Lloyd's List said the 20,000 deadweight tonne Chemstar Venus had 18 Filipino and five South Korean crew on board at the time.

It was not known whether the tanker, much smaller than the Saudi supertanker taken at the weekend, was full at the time. (Reporting by Stefano Ambrogi; Editing by Matthew Tostevin)

AlertNet news is provided by