Suspected pirates hijack Yemeni fishing boat off Somali waters, EU naval force says

Suspected Somali pirates have hijacked a Yemeni-flagged fishing boat off the coast of Puntland in northeast Somalia, marking the second such attack in just two months, according to the European Union’s anti-piracy naval force.

Suspected Somali pirates have hijacked a Yemeni-flagged fishing boat off the coast of Puntland in northeast Somalia, marking the second such incident in just two months. According to the European Union’s anti-piracy naval force, seven pirates boarded the vessel, which was carrying eight Somali crew members. The incident, which took place recently, is currently under investigation and has been officially classified as a hijacking.

This marks a troubling resurgence in piracy activity off the Horn of Africa, which had been largely dormant since 2018. In February, a similar hijacking occurred involving another Yemeni-flagged fishing boat, although the vessel was later abandoned by the pirates.

Piracy off Somalia's coast had reached crisis levels between 2008 and 2018, but recent months have seen a troubling uptick in pirate activity, prompting renewed concerns for maritime security in the region.

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