The World’s Piracy Hotspots
7th May 2026
A fourth vessel has been hijacked by Somali pirates, this time off the coast of Yemen. The oil tanker MT Eureka was captured in the Gulf of Aden on May 2 and reportedly taken toward Somalia, marking the latest incident in a renewed wave of Somali piracy, which resurfaced in 2023. Analysts attribute the resurgence to naval resources having turned their attention to Houthi attacks in the Gulf of Aden and Red Sea, and more recently, to the blockade in the Strait of Hormuz.
Data from the International Maritime Organization shows that since 2000, East Africa has been the global hotspot for successful hijackings, with 161 cases recorded. This figure is largely the result of Somali piracy, which peaked between 2007 and 2012. West Africa ranks second, with 52 hijackings over the same period.
It’s the South China Sea, however, that has recorded the highest overall number of piracy incidents, with more than 2,000 recorded since 2000. These were mostly lower-level attacks, alongside 42 successful hijackings. High shipping traffic and the region’s island chains, which provide ideal hiding spots, have contributed to the high frequency of attacks over the years. Incidents of piracy and armed robbery of ships have declined sharply from 142 in 2013 to just 10 in 2024, partly thanks to increased cooperation between states.