Gunmen seize tanker off Yemen amid resurgence of Somali piracy

UK maritime security monitor says Seamull tanker was diverted toward Somalia, as growing wave of piracy sweeps the Gulf of Aden.

A tanker has been ⁠boarded by six armed people who took ⁠control of the vessel off the coast of Yemen and diverted it towards Somalia, according to the United Kingdom ‌Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre.

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.

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“UKMTO have 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 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.

Analysts have said that naval forces are stretched thin by conflicts in the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz, causing international vessels to reroute and move closer to Somali waters. As instability continues in the East African country, these factors have driven a renewed threat of piracy in the region.