Pirates appear to be taking advantage of international naval strength being diverted elsewhere in region
Three vessels have been hijacked off the coast of Somalia in the past week, raising fears of a resurgence in piracy around the Horn of Africa, and adding to the woes of the global shipping industry.
The merchant vessel Sward was taken over on 26 April, a day after a dhow was seized. These followed the 21 April hijacking of Honour 25, a motor tanker carrying 18,000 barrels of oil, according to the Maritime Security Centre Indian Ocean (MSCIO), the tracking service of the EU’s naval force.
“All incidents remain ongoing …,” the MSCIO said in a statement on Monday. “Vessels operating in the area are strongly advised to maintain heightened vigilance … particularly within 150NM [nautical miles] of the Somali coast between Mogadishu and Hafun where feasible.”
Piracy around Somalia jumped in the late 2000s, peaking in 2011 with 212 attacks, according to EU naval force data. Pirates became more audacious, raiding ships as far as 2,270 miles off the Somali coast in the Indian Ocean.
