Pirates Board Tanker Off Somalia, Highest Tension Escalation Since 2024

Pirates have boarded a Malta-flagged products tanker off Somalia, maritime security sources said on Thursday, while the vessel's manager said the ship's 24 crew members were safe.

Attacks on vessels by armed assailants in recent days have raised concerns for shipping lanes in a region across which critical energy and goods are transported to global markets.

The Hellas Aphrodite, which was carrying gasoline, was en route from India to South Africa when a "security incident" took place on Thursday morning, its Greek manager Latsco Marine Management said, without providing details.

The European Union's naval force said one of its assets was "close to the incident and closing distance, ready to take the appropriate actions to respond effectively to this piracy alert".

Earlier, maritime security firm Ambrey said pirates on a skiff had opened fire on the tanker. Maritime security sources said the pirates had also fired a rocket-propelled grenade at the vessel.

ALL CREW MEMBERS ARE SAFE, SAYS VESSEL'S MANAGER

The crew members took shelter in the ship's "citadel", or fortified safe room, and remain there, an official from maritime security company Diaplous said. Assistance has been sought from the EU's naval forces operating in the area.

"All 24 crew are safe and accounted for and we remain in close contact with them," Latsco Marine Management said in a statement, adding that it had activated its emergency response team. Latsco said it was coordinating with authorities to ensure the continued safety and welfare of the crew.

The last comparable incident was in May 2024, when suspected pirates boarded the Liberian-flagged vessel Basilisk around 380 nautical miles east of Mogadishu. EU naval forces later rescued the 17 crew members after rappelling by fast-rope onto that vessel.

On Monday, in the first suspected Somali piracy incident of its kind since 2024, armed assailants attacked a commercial tanker off the coast near the capital Mogadishu, firing at the vessel after attempting to board it, maritime sources said.

Maritime security sources said pirates had also taken over an Iranian fishing vessel this week for use as a mothership to launch attacks.

The last hijacking took place in December 2023, when the Maltese-flagged Ruen was taken by assailants to the Somali coast before Indian naval forces freed the crew and arrested the attackers.

Somali pirate gangs have been relatively inactive in recent years after previously being a major menace around the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean.

Yemen's Iran-affiliated Houthi militia have posed a greater threat to shipping through the Red Sea, which leads into the Gulf of Aden, since the group first launched attacks on commercial ships in November 2023, in solidarity with Palestinians over Israel's war in Gaza.

While the Houthis have agreed to a truce on targeting U.S.-linked shipping, many shipping companies remain wary of resuming voyages through those waters.