The Indian High Commission in Nairobi has confirmed that all 22 Indian seafarers aboard two commercial vessels hijacked by armed pirates off the coasts of Yemen and Somalia are safe . The commission has taken up the matter with Somali authorities and is closely monitoring the situation, with the safety and welfare of the seafaring community being the top priority .
The two vessels involved are the Eritrea-flagged oil tanker MT Sibu 1 and the Cameroon-flagged cargo ship MV Lutuf. According to officials, the MT Sibu 1 was seized on August 20 in the Gulf of Aden, approximately 30 nautical miles off the Yemeni coast, by six armed pirates who arrived on two skiffs and took control of the vessel . Among its 20 crew members are 16 Indians, alongside nationals from Syria, Sudan, and Iraq .
In a separate incident on August 17, the MV Lutuf was hijacked off Somalia's Puntland coast by eight pirates armed with AK-47s . The vessel, which was reportedly carrying weapons and communications equipment bound for a Turkish military facility in Mogadishu, has a 10-member crew that includes six Indians, a Turkish national, a Georgian, and two Serbians .
The pirates had launched their attack from the MV Sward, a vessel they had captured in April . Reports indicate that the pirates forced the MT Sibu to change course towards Somalia , while the MV Lutuf was taken towards the Nugaal coast . The Indian High Commission in Nairobi, which also serves as India's mission to Somalia, has been coordinating with Somali authorities since the incidents . The Indian government has stated that it attaches the highest importance to the safety of its seafarers and is in constant contact with maritime authorities in the region .
This resurgence of piracy off the Somali coast, which had significantly declined after a peak in 2011 due to international naval operations, raises concerns about the safety of commercial shipping routes in the Gulf of Aden and the broader Indian Ocean
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