The recent hijacking of a cargo ship in the Baltic Sea, the first act of piracy in European waters since the 17th century, could signal the emergence of a new danger for European shipping crews. The 4,000-ton ‘Arctic Sea’, which was headed for Bejaia in Algeria with a cargo of around €1.2 million of sawn timber, should have arrived on 4 August. Reports suggest that the crew had been threatened with weapons. The vessel, which had been missing for two weeks, was found yesterday off the west coast of Africa. The hijackers – four Estonians, two Latvians and two Russians – have been arrested.