A Bangladeshi Flagged cargo ship M.V. Jahan Moni which was suspected to have been hijacked by pirates in the Arabian Sea is reportedly moving towards Somalia coast. The ship was reported to have been hijacked by pirates on Sunday evening approximately 1300 nautical miles East of the Eyl in Somalia and around 300 nautical miles from Cochin near the Indian coast. Bangladesh Shipping minister Shahjahan Khan who held a meeting in Dhaka to review the status of the ship on Monday said the government will take steps to gain possession of theship from the pirates without risking the lives of the sailors onboard. Director General of Bangladesh Shipping Department Rear Admiral Bazlur Rehman told AIR Correspondent in Dhaka that the movement of the ship is being monitored but there has been no contact with the crew members since Sunday evening. The ship had sent an alert message on Sunday evening that they were being chased and ninety minutes later contact with the ship’s crew was lost. The Bangladesh-flagged bulk cargo carrier has a 26 Bangladeshi people on board which includes 25 sailors and a wife of one of the sailors.AIR correspondent reports, the hijacking of the Bangladesh cargo ship 'MV Jahan Moni has thrown up a big challenge before the Bangladesh Shipping ministry. Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan said the government is closely monitoring the movement of the ship and is awaiting any message from the pirates who have taken over the ship. This is the first time that a Bangladesh ship has been hijacked in the high seas and the Bangladesh government is also taking steps to request friendly countries to aid in resolving the crisis. According to the European Union Naval Force for Somalia which is engaged in anti piracy operations in the region 23 vessels including the MV Jahan Moni are currently held by pirates, along with 547 hostages.