{"id":5501,"date":"2026-05-03T18:34:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-03T18:34:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/home\/kidnapping-of-oil-tanker-near-yemen-and-transfer-to-somalia"},"modified":"2026-05-03T20:26:21","modified_gmt":"2026-05-03T20:26:21","slug":"kidnapping-of-oil-tanker-near-yemen-and-transfer-to-somalia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/policy\/kidnapping-of-oil-tanker-near-yemen-and-transfer-to-somalia","title":{"rendered":"Kidnapping of Oil Tanker Near Yemen and Transfer to Somalia"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"ap-article-header-tag\"> <strong>Africa-Press. <\/strong> <\/span>Several Somali security officials reported that pirates have kidnapped an oil tanker off the coast of Yemen. The Yemeni coast guard had previously announced the hijacking of the tanker &#8220;MT Eureka&#8221; and its transfer to Somalia. Sources indicated that the pirates seized the vessel in the Gulf of Aden, near the port of Qana.<\/p>\n<p>Three security officials from the semi-autonomous Puntland region stated that the pirates launched their operation from a remote coastal area near the town of Qandala, overlooking the Gulf of Aden.<\/p>\n<p>This marks the second kidnapping of an oil tanker in the region within ten days, following the hijacking of the tanker &#8220;Honor 25&#8221; by Somali pirates on April 22. The &#8220;Honor 25&#8221; was carrying 18,500 barrels of oil bound for Mogadishu.<\/p>\n<p>Before the hijacking, the oil tanker &#8220;MT Eureka&#8221; was flying the flag of Togo, located in West Africa, and is currently sailing in the Gulf of Aden between Yemen and Somalia, expected to dock in Somali waters within the coming hours.<\/p>\n<p>In a separate incident, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported on Friday that &#8220;armed&#8221; individuals aboard a &#8220;boat&#8221; approached a cargo tanker near Mukalla, Yemen.<\/p>\n<p>These armed individuals departed from a remote coastal area near the town of Kalola (Alula), according to three separate security officials. Kalola is located 209 kilometers (130 miles) from the site where the hijackers seized the &#8220;MT Eureka.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The two separate incidents indicate an expansion of piracy along the vast Somali coastline, which is the longest in mainland Africa, stretching 3,333 kilometers (2,071 miles). The kidnapping that occurred today represents the fourth successful hijacking by pirates within two weeks.<\/p>\n<p>Somali authorities and the European Union Naval Force (EUNAVFOR), responsible for anti-piracy operations in Somali waters, have not yet commented on the recent hijacking.<\/p>\n<p>Somali piracy, which had been declining since 2011, has seen a sharp increase since late 2023, when Houthi rebels began attacking vessels in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. These attacks have forced international naval forces to focus on countering the Houthi threat, allowing armed groups along the Somali coast to exploit this security lapse.<\/p>\n<p>A security official from the semi-autonomous Puntland region stated, &#8220;The ongoing crisis with pirates is much worse than many realize. There is increasing movement (of armed groups) along the coast.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ap-article-footer-note\">Find more news and analyses on <span class=\"ap-highlight-country\">Africa<\/span> on the <span class=\"ap-highlight-brand\">Africa Press<\/span> website<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Africa-Press. Several Somali security officials reported that pirates have kidnapped an oil tanker off the coast of Yemen. The Yemeni coast guard had previously announced the hijacking of the tanker &#8220;MT Eureka&#8221; and its transfer to Somalia. Sources indicated that the pirates seized the vessel in the Gulf of Aden, near the port of Qana. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":5500,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[120],"class_list":{"0":"post-5501","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-policy","8":"tag-africa"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.1 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Kidnapping of Oil Tanker Near Yemen and Transfer to Somalia - Africa Press English<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"-article-header-tag&quot;&gt; Africa-Press. 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