Pirates have hijacked three fishing boats off the Somali coast, the third of such events since early this year, Kenya's maritime official said on Thursday.

Andrew Mwangura, coordinator of the Mombasa-based Seafarers Assistance Program, said the boats were seized in the northeast of pirate-infested Somalia on Wednesday night.

"We received reports last night that pirates have hijacked three fishing vessels. We are trying to establish the name of the vessels, crew members on board and if they were Spanish or Finnish, " Mwangura told Xinhua by telephone.

"We believe the vessels were taken by gunmen. No ransom has been demanded and efforts are underway to establish that," he added.

Piracy is rampant in Somalia. At least two vessels have been hijacked in the past two months as the global maritime body warned that the Horn of African nation's coastline is one of the most dangerous in the world.

Source: Xinhua