UPDATE 8-UK 'SBS' special forces storm tanker and detain stowaways in Channel

* UK special forces board tanker
* Seven suspects detained - UK government
* Crew is safe - UK government
* Crew on the tanker had been threatened, police say

(Writes through)
By Henry Nicholls
SOUTHAMPTON, England, Oct 25 (Reuters) - British special
forces stormed a Greek-operated oil tanker in the English
channel on Sunday to wrestle control of the vessel from seven
stowaways who had threatened the crew in a suspected hijacking.
Troops from the Special Boat Service, a navy special forces
unit whose headquarters in just a few miles away from where the
vessel began showing signs of distress, boarded the Nave
Andromeda near the Isle of Wight off southern England.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and Home Secretary Priti Patel
authorised the armed forces to board the ship "to safeguard life
and secure a ship that was subject to suspected hijacking", the
defence ministry said.
"Armed forces have gained control of the ship and seven
individuals have been detained," the ministry said. "Initial
reports confirm the crew are safe and well."
The defence ministry declined to confirm or deny the
involvement of the SBS - in line with British government policy
of not commenting on special forces operations.
But a source with knowledge of the matter said the SBS were
involved. SBS operations are usually classified. Former Royal
Navy warfare officer Chris Parry said the SBS had been involved.
The navy's Special Boat Service, considered a sister unit to
the Special Air Service Regiment (SAS), is one of Britain's most
secretive special forces units.
An elite maritime counter-terrorism unit, the SBS traces its
history back to World War Two and has been involved in many of
the conflicts of the past 70 years including Afghanistan and
Iraq.
The SBS's closest equivalent in the United States is the
SEAL Team Six, or Task Force Blue.
It was not immediately clear where the stowaways were from
or what their intentions were.
Thousands of illegal economic migrants and would-be asylum
seekers have sought to cross the English Channel from France to
reach British shores this year, often paying people traffickers
to help them traverse one of the world's busiest shipping lanes
in overloaded rubber dinghies. Police said the crew had been subject to threats from the
stowaways and that they were working with coastguard and border
forces to resolve the situation.
"They had made verbal threats towards the crew. No one has
been reported injured," a police spokesman said.
Refinitiv vessel tracking data showed the Liberia-flagged
Nave Andromeda had been expected to arrive in the English port
of Southampton at 1030 GMT on Sunday. The vessel had left from
Lagos, Nigeria, the data showed.
The Nave Andromeda's registered owner is Folegandros
Shipping Corp, and the vessel is managed by Greek shipping
company Navios Tankers Management Inc., according to Refinitiv.
In December 2018, British forces stormed an Italian cargo
ship and regained control after stowaways threatened crew as it
sailed close to the southeast coast.