8 Armed Pirates Seize Cargo Ship Off Somalia as 2026 Horn Attacks Rise

3 articles · Updated · DW (English) · Aug 17

Eight armed individuals boarded and seized an unnamed commercial cargo ship off Somalia, according to alerts issued Monday by UKMTO and the EU's MSCIO.
MSCIO said the crew was safe, while UKMTO warned other vessels to transit with caution and report suspicious activity near the Horn of Africa.
The seizure adds to a 2026 piracy resurgence in waters where attacks had dropped sharply after peaking around 2011.
Three tankers carrying fertilizer and oil were taken in April and May, and a chemical tanker was commandeered off Yemen in July; all four are being held off the Somali coast.
That revival is piling fresh pressure on shippers already rerouting around the contested Strait of Hormuz and Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.