Pirates Capture Iranian Fishing Boat
Twelve pirates took the Azini with 23 people aboard, creating a potential base for attacks on nearby cargo ships.
By Anthony Shevchenko ·
A group of 12 pirates took control of the Iranian fishing vessel Azini on Thursday, capturing 21 crew members and two Somali security guards. The hijacking occurred in the waters between Bandar Bayla and Hafun in northeastern Somalia.
The Maritime Security Center Indian Ocean issued a warning on Saturday that the crew's safety remained unknown. The center noted that the ship was moving toward a commercial shipping lane. Officials fear the pirates could use the vessel as a mother ship to launch further attacks on larger commercial traffic.
A maritime security officer with the Puntland Maritime Police Force confirmed the details of the seizure to The Associated Press on Sunday. The officer spoke anonymously because he was not authorized to talk to the media.
This incident is part of a wider resurgence of piracy in the Gulf of Aden and the western Indian Ocean. Since April, pirates have hijacked six commercial vessels. One of these, the oil products tanker Sibu 1, was seized about 252 kilometers east of al-Mukalla in Yemen.
Violence accompanied some of these recent captures. In September, Puntland authorities reported that pirates killed five crew members from the tanker MT Honour 25. Security forces later recovered the vessel, which had been held since April. Officials detained 16 suspected pirates in connection with the incident.
The European Union’s naval Operation Atalanta is currently investigating the seizure of the Azini. The security center has urged other ships in the area to stay alert and report any suspicious activity.
The renewed threat complicates shipping in a region already stressed by the Iran war. Attacks in the Strait of Hormuz and threats from Houthi rebels against Saudi-linked shipping have forced some oil shipments to take routes around Africa. These detours can add a month to voyage times and have pushed daily spot charter rates for tankers in the Strait of Hormuz to $1 million.
