Piracy off the coast of Somalia occurs in the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel, and Somali Sea, in Somali territorial waters and other surrounding places and has a long troubled history with different perspectives from different communities. It was initially a threat to international fishing vessels during the early 2000s, only to rapidly escalate and expand to international shipping during the War in Somalia (2006–2009).
There were 49 ships reported pirate attacks in the first three months of 2008, up from 41 in that period of 2007. According to the ICC International Maritime Bureau, in those attacks: "Seven crew members were taken hostage, six kidnapped, three killed and one missing – presumed dead." Up until mid-November 2008, more than 90 vessels had been attacked by pirates in the year. At the same time, with a more than 75 per cent increase since the previous year, pirates were holding 13 ships captive in the Somali ports of Eyl and Hobyo.
On September 2, 2008, the French yacht Carré d'As IV and its two crew were captured in the Gulf of Aden by seven armed Somali pirates, who demanded the release of six pirates captured in the April MY Le Ponant raid and over one million dollars in ransom. On September 16, 2008, on the orders of President Nicolas Sarkozy, French special forces raided and recovered the yacht, rescued the two hostages, killed one pirate, and captured the other six. The pirates were flown to France to stand trial for piracy and related offenses; ultimately, five of them were convicted and sentenced to four to eight years in prison, while a sixth was acquitted. The incident marked the second French counter-piracy commando operation of 2008, as well as the first French trial of Somali pirates.
MV Iran Deyanat is an Iranian ship that was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden by 40 pirates with Kalashnikovs and RPGs on August 21, 2008. The crew of the ship numbered 29: a Pakistani captain, 14 Iranians including an engineer, 3 Indians, 2 Filipinos, and 10 Croatians. The ship was freed on October 10, and the crew was unharmed. The ship went underway bound to Oman and then to its final destination at Rotterdam.
MV Manifa is an oil tanker formally owned and operated by Vela International Marine. With a length overall of 330 m (1,080 ft) and a capacity of 2.2 million barrels (350,000 m3) of crude oil, she is classified as a very large crude carrier or VLCC. Vela is based in the United Arab Emirates and is a subsidiary of the Saudi Arabian state oil company Saudi Aramco. Sirius Star is one of Vela's 24 tankers, of which 19 are VLCCs. Since her launch, the ship has been registered in Monrovia under the Liberian flag of convenience. She has since been reflagged to Saudi Arabia
The MV Stolt Strength is a Philippines-flagged ship, managed by a Panamanian company. It was hijacked by Somali pirates off the Gulf of Aden on November 10, 2008. The chemical tanker, carrying phosphoric acid and 21 Filipino crewmembers aboard, was attacked by men carrying automatic rifles and rocket-propelled grenades. The ship's owner, Sagana Shipping, of Manila, was awaiting word from the pirates regarding ransom.
The MT Stolt Valor was a Hong Kong-flagged ship that was hijacked while in the Designated Safety Corridor within the Gulf of Aden, approximately 38 nautical miles (70 km) away from the coast of Yemen, while heading from the United States south through the Gulf towards Asia. After the ship passed through the Suez Canal, it encountered hijackers and alerted the International Maritime Bureau. Area coalition forces arrived too late to avert the hijacking which occurred at 10:16 UTC on September 15, 2008 by Somali pirates.
The MV Powerful is a Danish-flagged cargo ship owned by Excel Maritime Carriers Ltd. of Greece. It was attacked with the intention of hijack by Somali pirates using assault rifles on 11 November 2008 in the Gulf of Aden off the Horn of Africa. Its capture was thwarted by the Royal Marines of the British frigate, HMS Cumberland, as well as the crew of a Russian Neustrashimy-class frigate.
The MV Biscaglia was a chemical tanker managed by Ishima Pte. Ltd. of Singapore and held by Industrial Shipping Enterprises Management Company LLC of Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Zodiac Maritime Ltd is an international ship management company that owns and charters out large vessels. It is part of Ofer Global based in Monaco and chaired by Eyal Ofer. It has a long-standing business relationship with Mediterranean Shipping Company.
MV Qana or Gna was a Yemeni tanker, built in Japan in 1978. On 26 April 2009 it was hijacked of the coast of Yemen by Somali pirates but recovered by the Yemeni coastguard the following day. The captured Somalis were later found guilty of piracy. The ship was broken up in 2021.
The MV Iceberg 1 is a Panama-flagged roll-on/roll-off cargo ship that was hijacked by Somali pirates on March 29, 2010. It was the longest-held hijacked ship until the Puntland Maritime forces released it and 22 crew members on 23 December 2012.
INS Sumitra is the fourth and last Saryu-class patrol vessel of the Indian Navy, designed and constructed by Goa Shipyard Limited. It is also the presidential yacht of India. It is designed to undertake fleet support operations, coastal and offshore patrolling, ocean surveillance and monitoring of sea lines of communications and offshore assets and escort duties.
The following lists events that happened in 2009 in Somalia.
Chinese naval escort in Somalia，Is a military operation launched by the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy in Gulf of Aden Somali pirates frequent waters since the end of 2008. This action was undertaken by the Central Military Commission of the People's Republic of China in accordance with the United Nationsthe Security Council resolution 1846 and its subsequent resolutions, and in light of the practice of the States concerned, Carried out with the consent of Government of Somalia. The main contents of the operation are: to protect the safety of Chinese ships and personnel sailing in the waters; Protect World Food Programme and other world organization ships carrying humanitarian supplies. The first Chinese naval escort taskforce to Somalia set sail from the Hainan Sanya military port on 26 December 2008, and arrived in the Gulf of Aden, Somalia, on 6 January 2009 to officially begin escort work. By May 2023, 44 escort taskforces had been dispatched, and escort operations are still ongoing.
2023 in piracy was marked by 120 events of maritime piracy against ships, according to the annual Piracy and Armed Robbery Report of the ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB). 105 vessels were boarded, nine additional attacks attempted, two fired upon, and four vessels hijacked.
2022 in piracy resulted in 115 reports of maritime piracy and armed robbery against ships to the International Maritime Bureau. 288 acts of global piracy and robbery were recorded by the MICA Centre. Piracy had substantially increased in the Gulf of Guinea; the year began with five incidents each month, through March, in the Gulf, where acts of piracy had become heightened during 2015 through 2020, while, overall, piracy incidents declined globally.
2024 in piracy included 33 reports of maritime piracy and armed robbery against ships to the International Maritime Bureau during the first quarter of the year. Incidents that happend in 2023 and soon is reported to happen 2026 Crew continued to suffer violence, with 35 seafarers taken hostage, nine kidnapped, and one of the most important casualties threatened during the first three months of the year.
Hong Kong
