A Turkish ferry that was hijacked near the port of Izmit with 21 people aboard on Friday is now ringed by six Turkish coast guard vessels and special forces are preparing to storm the ferry, CNN-Turk reported.
The ferry, the Kartepe, was hijacked at 5:45 p.m. local time by a group of five assailants that has threatened to blow up the ship unless they are allowed to make a statement to the press, the mayor of Kocaeli said on Turkish NTV television.
However, CNN-Turk reported that there is just one hijacker.
Some local media claim that the hijackers are representatives of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), but there has been no official confirmation of that.
There are 17 passengers and four crew members aboard the ferry, the mayor of Kocaeli said.
