Pirates Hijack Cargo Ship Off Somalia, Vessel Heads Toward Coast

MOGADISHU, Somalia — A suspected pirate team seized a St. Kitts and Nevis-flagged general cargo ship off Somalia’s coast Monday and was steering it toward shore, maritime security firms said, underscoring a fresh uptick in pirate activity in the area.

British security companies Vanguard and Ambrey said the vessel, identified as Sward, is believed to have come under pirate control after being boarded near Godobjiran in central Somalia.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said the attack occurred about 6 nautical miles northeast of Garacad and described it as a hijacking.

Vanguard said the ship carried 15 crew members, including two Indian nationals and 13 Syrians.

“The vessel is currently assessed to be under pirate control and proceeding toward the Somali coastline. The Puntland State Maritime Police Force has been notified,” Vanguard said in a security note issued late Sunday.

Ambrey said the ship was en route from Suez, Egypt, to Mombasa, Kenya, when it was boarded. The company said all crew members were on the bridge at the time except for two mechanics.

Officials in Puntland State, the semi-autonomous Somali region toward which the vessel was heading, did not immediately respond to the incident.

Piracy along Somalia’s vast coastline once severely disrupted global shipping between 2008 and 2018, with armed groups attacking commercial vessels in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean.

Those attacks had dropped sharply in recent years as naval patrols intensified and ships improved their security measures, but pirate activity began climbing again in late 2023.

In November 2025, armed assailants struck a commercial tanker off Mogadishu, the first such reported incident since 2024.

Security analysts say economic hardship, limited coastal enforcement and persistent instability may be helping drive the renewed threat in Somali waters.

AXADLETM