Ship Hijackings Off Somalia Raise Fears of Piracy Resurgence
5th May 2026
At least four ships have been hijacked off the coast of Somalia in recent weeks, stoking fears of a piracy resurgence in the region. Officials say the rise in attacks is connected to the war in Iran, as pirates are taking the opportunity to act while naval forces are preoccupied with the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. The EU’s Maritime Security Centre Indian Ocean has called for all vessels in the area to maintain “heightened vigilance”, especially between Mogadishu and Hafun.
To understand the significance of this uptick, it helps to look at the longer trend. Piracy off Somalia reached its peak in 2011, when the International Maritime Organization recorded 286 incidents, including both attempted and successful attacks. A coordinated international response, including naval patrols and onboard security, then drove a steep decline, with cases falling to 99 in 2012 and just 12 by 2015. For three consecutive years between 2020 and 2022, no incidents were reported to the IMO in this area at all.
But these figures only tell part of the story. In 2009, most piracy cases were concentrated off East Africa, where 222 incidents, including 48 hijackings, were recorded. By 2010, however, Somali pirates had started to use captured dhows, fishing vessels and merchant ships as “motherships” in order to extend their operational reach. As a result, incidents off East Africa fell to 172, while attacks in the Indian Ocean rose from 27 to 77 (including a rise from two hijackings to 20). Activity in the Arabian Sea also increased over the same period, from two to 16.