East Africa: Somali Piracy Returns – a Warning From the Western Indian Ocean
Joint naval patrols are stretched thin by the Middle East crisis, but their ability to eradicate piracy was always limited.
Piracy has re-emerged off Somalia’s coast. Numerous dhows and larger merchant vessels were targeted in April and May, with some ships and their crews held for ransom. In response, the Joint Maritime Information Center raised its piracy threat assessment to ‘severe.’
To stop a resurgence in piracy along its coast, Somalia and its neighbours must urgently address what perpetuates the crime. That includes illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, which threatens the ecosystems, economies and social fabric of coastal populations. The seeming near-collapse of sea-dependent livelihoods with few alternative income options means many either leave to escape poverty or resort to piracy to earn a living.
Several attacks at the end of 2025 had already caused concern. The December to March northeast monsoon, which limits pirates’ ability to operate at a distance, provided a brief weather-linked respite. Incidents have since increased during the inter-monsoon window period from April to May, when winds and wave heights are lower.
On 2 May, the Eureka oil tanker was seized while anchored in Yemeni waters. Puntland security officials said the pirates launched from a remote coastal area near the Gulf of Aden town of Qandala. They were reportedly demanding a US$10 million ransom while holding the vessel and its crew near Puntland.
This hijacking occurred far from shore, suggesting a higher level of sophistication than that of two other pirate groups operating in the region, raising the spectre of a third group.
Increased vessel activity along northern Somalia’s coastline allows pirates to exploit maritime vulnerabilities, creating a broader security challenge with implications for global shipping. Crude oil tankers moving to or from Yanbu in Saudi Arabia are valuable targets given the high ransom potential of their crews and cargoes, especially amid disruptions caused by the Strait of Hormuz shutdown.
Pirates lack the infrastructure and illicit market access needed to offload containers, oil and cargo, so they prefer hijacking vessels and taking hostages for ransom over cargo theft.
The two successful April hijackings of the merchant vessels Honour 25 and Sward were made easier by their proximity to Somalia’s shoreline. Most commercial vessels avoid sailing that close. Also, neither ship was carrying armed security personnel, which have helped prevent successful hijackings in the past.
Piracy was rampant off Somalia’s coast in the 2000s, peaking in 2011 with hundreds of attacks. But these numbers were significantly reduced by coordinated international naval deployments, new safety tactics and preventive measures taken by commercial shipping. Somali communities and local maritime police also closed the onshore spaces that enabled pirates to operate.
As a result, pirates turned to lower-risk illicit activities such as arms trafficking, migrant smuggling, illegal fishing, narcotics movement and charcoal-linked criminal finance. But United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres’ 2022 report on piracy and armed robbery at sea off Somalia warned that the networks and operational knowledge underpinning piracy remained intact.
To curb the problem now, Somalia needs to address illegal fishing and other community grievances. Besides local fishers turning to piracy due to lost income, pirates also justify their actions by claiming they help deter vessels engaging in illegal fishing. Somalia’s seas are extremely lucrative, containing multiple high-value fish stocks that are poorly protected due to minimal Somali maritime security capacity.
Multinational naval patrols in the area since 2008 are now stretched thin by redeployments to the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz. The European Union’s Operation Atalanta continues, but is limited to around two ships and air assets deployed concurrently.
The multinational counter-piracy Combined Task Force 151 continues, but is part of a United States (US)-led maritime security effort headquartered in Bahrain. With its close links to US Naval Forces Central Command, the task force is hindered by the US-Iran conflict.
International naval cooperation has helped suppress rather than eradicate piracy – a task that requires Somalia’s federal government and its partners to reverse governance gaps and strengthen capacity for maritime security.
The Somali maritime police at the federal and state levels provide limited coast guard activities. The federal government has a small navy and coast guard operating in and around Mogadishu’s port, with limited outreach beyond the territorial sea.
Also, the federal government’s priority is the al-Shabaab threat in the south – not piracy in remote areas north of Mogadishu. In practice, state entities such as the Puntland Maritime Police Force provide the primary domestic means of countering piracy.
When it comes to maritime security, Türkiye is a key geopolitically minded actor to watch. The country has increasing interests and responsibilities in this area and has signed several agreements with Somalia’s federal government since 2024. One of these gave the Turkish Navy responsibility for safeguarding Somalia’s territorial waters.
In February 2026, the Turkish Parliament extended the mandate of Turkish naval forces in the Gulf of Aden, Somali territorial waters, the Arabian Sea and adjacent regions for another year.
Several high-value Turkish maritime assets are in place along central Somalia’s Galmudug coastline, where the recent hijackings occurred, notably Türkiye’s first overseas deep-sea drilling mission, which arrived in April. In addressing piracy, Turkish naval forces would likely prioritise these assets rather than Somalia’s waters.
Rising piracy attacks are a warning that maritime security in the Western Indian Ocean remains fragile. Whether these incidents become a sustained piracy cycle will depend on whether ransoms are paid and if this encourages copycat attacks.
By ISS.
