Tanker Near Somalia Fires Warning Shots to Chase Off Suspicious Approach

pirate group in small boat — Small boat approached a tanker marking the third incident in a week (USN)

A tanker sailing in the Gulf of Aden reported on May 22 that its security team was forced to fire warning shots during a suspicious approach. It was the latest in the ongoing incidents in the region being linked to several active groups of Somali pirates.

The company security officer for the unidentified tanker reported the incident to the UK Maritime Trade Operations. The tanker was underway when it was approached approximately 98 nautical miles from Socotra, an island controlled by Yemen.

A small craft with five people aboard was detected approaching the tanker. The armed security team fired warning shots, which caused the small boat to change course.

It was the third approach in the last week, according to data from the EU’s Maritime Security Center for the Indian Ocean (MSCIO). On May 18, a skiff operating near Bosaso, Somalia, was reported to the EU’s Operation Atalanta. It was believed to be a pirate group seeking a merchant ship target. Three days earlier, on May 15, a suspicious high-speed boat was reported to have stopped a fishing vessel. The people aboard the boat were carrying weapons resembling AK-47 rifles.

Three vessels also remain under the control of pirate groups and are being held off the coast of Somalia. The tanker MT Honour 25 was seized on April 21, the general cargo ship Sward was seized on April 26, and the tanker Eureka was seized on May 2. The pirates are reported to be demanding $3 million for the release of the Eureka.

UKMTO warns that the piracy threat level remains severe along the Somalia coast and in the Somalia Basin. MSCIO specifically cited the highest risk to the north near the Puntland region and in the Gulf of Aden. It also rates the risk as moderate along the Somali coast. Vessels have been warned to remain at least 150 nautical miles off the coast, or to avoid the region if possible.