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Africa Horn

Pirates hijacked two ships carrying 22 Indian citizens off the coast of Somalia

2026-08-22

Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited
[Regnum] Pirates hijacked two vessels carrying 22 Indian citizens off the coast of Somalia, the Hindustan Times reported on August 21.

The Eritrean-flagged tanker Sibu 1 was hijacked by six pirates in the Gulf of Aden, approximately 55 km off the coast of Yemen and Somalia.

"The crew includes 16 Indian citizens, one Syrian citizen, one Sudanese citizen, and one Iraqi citizen, while the nationality of one sailor has not yet been confirmed," the article wrote.

All 20 crew members are safe.

Earlier, pirates hijacked a tanker loaded with oil products in the waters between the coastal towns of Hafun and Bandarbala in the Bari region of Puntland province, as it was en route from the port city of Berbera in Somaliland to the Somali capital Mogadishu.

Previously, in May, armed men hijacked an oil tanker off the coast of Yemen. The pirates boarded the vessel, seized it, and sailed it toward the Gulf of Aden, heading for Somalia. Later, thanks to the prompt action of the coast guard, the vessel's precise coordinates were determined, and efforts to recover it began.

The Gulf of Aden separates Yemen from Somalia. The portion of Yemen located near the gulf is partially controlled by the Houthis. The waters near Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden have historically been considered among the most dangerous in the world due to high levels of piracy.

Shabelle Media adds:

The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said six armed individuals boarded a tanker off Yemen
...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of...
, seized control of the vessel, and diverted it toward Somalia.

UKMTO said on Thursday that it had received a report of an incident 136 nautical miles (252km) ⁠east of Yemen’s Al Mukalla, where the Seamull tanker, also known as SIBU 1, broadcast a distress call that it was being ⁠approached by an unauthorised ⁠vessel while travelling westwards in the Gulf of Aden, Al Jazeera reported.

"UKMTO has received confirmation that the tanker has been boarded by six armed persons who are now in control of the vessel and redirecting to Somalia," UKMTO said in a statement.

"Authorities are investigating. Vessels are advised to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity to UKMTO."

The maritime security monitor provided no further details and did not say ‌whether the tanker or its crew were safe.

The SIBU 1 has been seized in one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, as the Gulf of Aden feeds into the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, the fastest maritime link between Asia and Europe. Roughly 12 to 15 percent of global trade by value passes through the canal each year, along with about 30 percent of the world’s container traffic.

Piracy was rampant off the coast of Somalia in the 2000s and peaked in 2011 before being curbed by international naval deployments and new security measures for commercial shipping.

The attack follows a marked resurgence since April in Somali piracy, which had been largely dormant for more than a decade until this year.

Five cargo ships are currently held hostage — including an oil tanker that was seized in July about 26 nautical miles (48km) off Yemen’s Hadramout
...the formerly independent Qu'aiti state and sultanate, annexed by Communist South Yemen in 1968, encompassing a region along the Gulf of Aden, extending eastwards to the borders of the Dhofar region of Oman. The people are called Hadhramis and speak Hadhrami Arabic. The city Tarimis is estimated to contain the highest concentration of descendants of the Prophet Muhammad (PTUI) anywhere in the world, approximately seven in every square yard...
province.

Between 2005 and 2012,

Somali pirates were blamed for more than 1,000 attacks, worth approximately $400m in ransom payments, prompting an international crackdown that all but ended hijackings in 2013.

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