Somali Pirates Briefly Hijack Oil Tanker in Gulf of Aden

Somali pirates briefly seized an oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden off Yemen before abandoning the vessel following a naval intervention, the European Naval Force and security sources in Puntland reported on Saturday. The attack occurred on Thursday when six armed men boarded the MT Glamour, a tanker flagged to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, while it was sailing roughly 38 nautical miles (70 kilometers) offshore. Puntland security sources said the attackers launched their assault from a small coastal village. Upon spotting the threat, the crew stopped the vessel, shut down its systems, and locked themselves inside the ship's reinforced safe room before the pirates boarded. The standoff ended after a Japanese warship arrived and deployed helicopters to conduct overflights of the tanker, prompting the six gunmen to flee, according to Puntland authorities. The incident follows the release on Friday of the cargo ship MV Sword, which had been held by Somali pirates since April along with its 17-member crew. Security sources and Puntland authorities confirmed a ransom was paid to secure that release. Despite these resolutions, four other tankers—Honor 25, Eureka, Asana, and Simol—remain under pirate control after being seized near the Somali coast earlier this year. The brief hijacking adds to a sharp resurgence in piracy off the Horn of Africa and the Gulf of Aden since April, with the International Maritime Organization recording at least 15 attacks in 2026, the highest level since 2013. In December, the United States sanctioned the Simol, also known as SIBU 1, over its alleged role in Iran's shadow fleet used to ship crude oil covertly.