Tuesday April 28, 2026 A cargo ship is seen in a port in central Mogadishu Suspected pirates have seized a cargo vessel off Somalia, according to officials and maritime security groups, in what appears to be the latest sign that insecurity is returning to waters once notorious for such attacks. The reported hijacking on Monday was the second off Somalia in less than a week. The target was the Sward, a St Kitts and Nevis-flagged ship carrying cement from Suez, Egypt, to the Kenyan port city of Mombasa. The incident comes at…

Harry SekulichMonday April 27, 2026 Shipping routes off Somalia are once again under close scrutiny after a cargo vessel was seized in what authorities believe was a fresh piracy incident, prompting warnings that the danger to commercial traffic in the region is rising. The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) lifted the threat level for the area to "substantial" after saying "unauthorised persons" took control of the ship on Sunday and forced it toward Somalia's territorial waters. At least four vessels have been targeted…

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…

A US military strike on an alleged drug-trafficking vessel killed two people, pushing the reported death toll from Washington’s campaign against what it calls “narco-terrorists” in Latin America to at least 182. In a post on X, US Southern Command, which oversees American forces in the region, said the military had "conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organisations." It said intelligence had determined the vessel was moving along established drug-smuggling routes in the Eastern…

Saturday April 11, 2026 Türkiye is preparing to launch its first deep-sea drilling project abroad, a milestone that Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said on Friday in Mogadishu will usher in a new era for the country’s energy ambitions. The Curad-1 well, located offshore Somalia, is the centerpiece of the effort. Situated about 372 kilometers from Mogadishu, the well will probe a geological formation flagged as promising after months of seismic work carried out by Türkiye's Oruc Reis vessel.…

Türkiye’s deep-sea drilling vessel Çağrı Bey has reached Mogadishu, setting the stage for Somalia’s first offshore oil drilling campaign, officials from both countries said Friday. Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar described the mission as “historic,” saying it would “open a new chapter in Turkish energy history.” The work stems from a hydrocarbon agreement signed in 2024, which gave Türkiye’s state-owned energy company TPAO the right to explore three offshore blocks, each covering about 5,000 square…

Will XavierTuesday April 7, 2026 An Iranian-flagged dhow that had been seized off Somalia’s coast has been freed after sustained pressure from EU naval forces, with the vessel now back under control and its crew accounted for, Operation Atalanta said. The Alwaseemi was hijacked on March 24, roughly 400 nautical miles east of Mogadishu, according to the mission. A warship and other Atalanta assets kept the fishing boat under close watch in the days that followed. "The pirates left the fishing vessel as a result of the…

Wednesday April 1, 2026 Somalia has been stepping up its push for a larger role on the world stage in recent years. / Others Somalia has moved a significant notch closer to putting its flag on ships sailing abroad after signing an agreement to establish the Somali Ship Registry system. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed in Mogadishu on Sunday between Somalia’s Ministry of Ports and Marine Transport and Somali Ship Register Limited, a privately owned company. In a statement, the ministry said the partnership is…

Hargeisa, North Western State of Somalia — A cargo vessel carrying hundreds of livestock from North Western State of Somalia sank Friday off Yemen’s southern coast near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, raising urgent questions over the fate of its seven crew members and renewed concerns about the safety of the regional maritime livestock trade. The wooden vessel, which departed the Port of Berbera, went down near Ras al-Ara in Yemen’s Lahj province, according to local sources. It was reportedly transporting about 400 sheep and 150…

Chinese fishing vessel and crew freed after seizure off Puntland State following China–Somalia coordination MOGADISHU — A Chinese fishing vessel seized by armed men off the coast of Puntland State was released along with all crew members after coordinated efforts by China, Somalia’s federal government and Puntland State authorities, officials said Tuesday. The vessel was freed on March 2 in what the Chinese Embassy in Mogadishu described as a peaceful resolution reached through close consultations between Somalia’s federal…