Tearful wives and parents waved goodbye at Haywharf this morning as 22 Maltese soldiers boarded a Dutch warship landing craft to embark on mission off the coast of Somalia.

The boarding craft is taking the officers to the Dutch warship Johan de Witt, berthed some 12 miles out, which will head to the coast of Somalia to embark on the operation EU Navfor Atalanta until September 27.

Brigadier Martin Xuereb said this was the largest contingent Malta had ever sent on the mission, which was Malta’s third.

It was some notches higher in terms of operations than what the army was involved in in the past for, this time, the Maltese team was not just providing support but also replacing a contingent of Dutch marines.

For the first time, Maltese soldiers will not just provide vessel protection but will, if necessary, board ships that might be hostile. The team also includes an army medic.

The role of the operation is to deter piracy and armed robbery off the coast of Somalia with a view to strengthen the security within the area of operations.

Specific roles include:

* The protection of World Food Program vessels delivering aid to displaced persons in Somalia, and the protection of African Union Mission on Somalia shipping. The protection of vulnerable shipping off the Somali coast on a case by case basis; and

* The monitoring of fishing activities off the coast of Somalia.

The Maltese team is led by Lt Col Ian Ruggier.

Home Affairs Minister Manuel Mallia and the Dutch ambassador to Malta, Robbert J. Gabriëlse, were among those seeing the team off at Haywharf.