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Indian Naval Forces Rescue Hijacked Vessels in Response to Possible Resurgence of Piracy near Somalia

Image Source: India Today | Photo by Indian Navy

Indian naval forces have successfully rescued two hijacked vessels off the coast of Somalia, raising concerns about a potential increase in piracy activity in the region. The rescues, carried out by the warship INS Sumitra, took place within a span of 36 hours. This comes shortly after the Seychelles defense forces freed a group of fishermen from pirates in the same area.

In the past, the waters off the Somali coast were notorious for piracy, but the situation improved significantly due to the increased presence of international naval forces. India, in particular, has been actively patrolling the area since 2008. However, recent reports suggest that many naval forces have now shifted their focus to the Red Sea, where the Houthi rebel group, based in Yemen, has been conducting attacks on ships. Experts fear that this shift in attention may be exploited by pirates in the region.

Although this marks the first successful hijacking since 2017, experts believe that a full-scale resurgence of piracy is unlikely. The recent attacks seem more opportunistic than systematic, according to Troels Burchall Henningsen, an associate professor at the Royal Danish Defence College. However, there has been a noticeable increase in attacks in January.

On January 28, the Indian navy received a distress message and promptly intercepted an Iranian-flagged vessel. Following the successful rescue of the 17 crew members, the ship was sanitized and allowed to continue its journey. Two days later, on January 30, INS Sumitra was deployed again to locate and intercept another hijacked Iranian-flagged fishing vessel called Al Naeemi. The navy personnel boarded the vessel to ensure the well-being of the crew, consisting of 19 Pakistani sailors.

The pirates’ fate has not been explicitly mentioned in the reports, but an image posted on social media platform X shows armed navy personnel guarding individuals with their hands tied behind their backs.

In a separate incident in early January, Indian Navy commandos rescued 21 crew members from a Liberian-flagged ship that was attacked by pirates off the Somalian coast.

Meanwhile, the Seychelles also reported its success in freeing six Sri Lankan fishermen who were taken hostage by armed gunmen 840 nautical miles southeast of the Somali capital, Mogadishu.

The Indian Navy has been actively responding to distress calls in the region. On January 26, they deployed INS Visakhapatnam to the Gulf of Aden following a distress call from Marlin Luanda, a tanker with connections to the UK. The vessel had caught fire after being hit by a missile fired by the Houthis. French and US naval ships also provided assistance to the distressed vessel.

Sources:
– BBC News | Yahoo News