Friday , Nov 7, 2025 (HCM) Attackers firing machineguns and rocket-propelled grenades have boarded a ship off the coast of Somalia, United Kingdom officials say of the latest assault, likely by resurgent Somali pirates, in the region.

“The Master of a vessel has reported being approached by 1 small craft on its stern. The small craft fired small arms and RPG’s towards the vessel,” the British military’s UK Maritime Trade Operations centre said in an alert issued on Thursday. It warned ships in the area to “transit with caution”.

The private security firm Ambrey also said an attack was under way, saying it targeted a Malta-flagged tanker heading from Sikka, India, to Durban, South Africa.

Ambrey added that it appeared to be an assault by Somali pirates, who are reported to be operating in the area in recent days and who seized an Iranian fishing boat to use as a base of operations. Iran has not acknowledged the seizure of the fishing boat, called the Issamohamadi.

Details of the vessel attacked on Thursday correspond to the Hellas Aphrodite, which changed its track and slowed down at the time of the attack. The ship’s owners and managers could not immediately be reached for comment.

Another maritime security firm, the Diaplous Group, said the attacked tanker had a crew of 24 mariners, all of whom reportedly locked themselves into the ship’s citadel for safety during the attack. The vessel did not have an armed security team on board it, the firm added.

The European Union’s Operation Atalanta, a counterpiracy mission around the Horn of Africa, has responded to other recent pirate attacks in the area and issued a recent alert to shippers that a pirate group was operating off Somalia and assaults were “almost certain” to happen.

Thursday’s attack came after another vessel, the Cayman Islands-flagged Stolt Sagaland, found itself targeted in a suspected pirate attack that involved both its armed security force and the attackers shooting at each other, the EU force said.

Piracy off Somalia peaked in 2011 when 237 attacks were reported. Somali piracy in the region in 2011 cost the world’s economy about $7bn with $160m paid out in ransoms, according to the Oceans Beyond Piracy monitoring group.

The threat was diminished by increased international naval patrols, a strengthened central government in Somalia and other efforts.

However, Somali piracy has surged again since late 2023. According to Solace Global Risk, a travel risk management company, the decline in antipiracy patrols and the relocation of funds to counter Houthi rebels activities contributed to the rise in attacks.

In 2024, there were seven reported incidents off Somalia, according to the International Maritime Bureau. So far this year, multiple fishing boats have been seized by Somali pirates.

Friday , November 7, 2025 (HCM) Attackers firing machineguns and rocket-propelled grenades have boarded a ship off the coast of Somalia, United Kingdom officials say of the latest assault, likely by resurgent Somali pirates, in the region.

“The Master of a vessel has reported being approached by 1 small craft on its stern. The small craft fired small arms and RPG’s towards the vessel,” the British military’s UK Maritime Trade Operations centre said in an alert issued on Thursday. It warned ships in the area to “transit with caution”.

The private security firm Ambrey also said an attack was under way, saying it targeted a Malta-flagged tanker heading from Sikka, India, to Durban, South Africa.

Ambrey added that it appeared to be an assault by Somali pirates, who are reported to be operating in the area in recent days and who seized an Iranian fishing boat to use as a base of operations. Iran has not acknowledged the seizure of the fishing boat, called the Issamohamadi.

Details of the vessel attacked on Thursday correspond to the Hellas Aphrodite, which changed its track and slowed down at the time of the attack. The ship’s owners and managers could not immediately be reached for comment.

Another maritime security firm, the Diaplous Group, said the attacked tanker had a crew of 24 mariners, all of whom reportedly locked themselves into the ship’s citadel for safety during the attack. The vessel did not have an armed security team on board it, the firm added.

The European Union’s Operation Atalanta, a counterpiracy mission around the Horn of Africa, has responded to other recent pirate attacks in the area and issued a recent alert to shippers that a pirate group was operating off Somalia and assaults were “almost certain” to happen.

Thursday’s attack came after another vessel, the Cayman Islands-flagged Stolt Sagaland, found itself targeted in a suspected pirate attack that involved both its armed security force and the attackers shooting at each other, the EU force said.

Piracy off Somalia peaked in 2011 when 237 attacks were reported. Somali piracy in the region in 2011 cost the world’s economy about $7bn with $160m paid out in ransoms, according to the Oceans Beyond Piracy monitoring group.

The threat was diminished by increased international naval patrols, a strengthened central government in Somalia and other efforts.

However, Somali piracy has surged again since late 2023. According to Solace Global Risk, a travel risk management company, the decline in antipiracy patrols and the relocation of funds to counter Houthi rebels activities contributed to the rise in attacks.

In 2024, there were seven reported incidents off Somalia, according to the International Maritime Bureau. So far this year, multiple fishing boats have been seized by Somali pirates.

Soirce Hiiran Online

Friday , November 7, 2025 (HCM)Somalia’s government said Wednesday that its national army killed at least 49 al-Shabab fighters during a military operation in the Lower Shabelle region.

According to the Ministry of Information, Somalia’s special forces working in coordination with the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) and “international security partners” struck militant positions in the village of Bulo-Madino on Tuesday evening. The operation destroyed several military vehicles and a weapons cache used by the extremists.

“Last night, the whole earth shook. We heard two huge air strikes,” said Ali Farah, a local bus driver.

The United States military, which has carried out multiple airstrikes against al-Shabab this year, said it was not involved in Tuesday’s operation.

Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre said in a separate statement that government forces have killed more than 600 al-Shabab fighters, wounded 1,200 others, and recaptured 68 settlements over the past three months as part of a “comprehensive military, economic, and ideological war” aimed at dismantling the insurgency.

The Lower Shabelle region remains one of al-Shabab’s long-standing strongholds, where Somali forces backed by international allies have intensified operations to reclaim rural territories and cut off the militants’ logistical networks.

Soirce Hiiran Online