DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) 鈥� The European Union and Indian navies have taken over a ship used by pirates off the coast of to , the EU force said Wednesday.
The Iranian fishing vessel called the Issamohamadi had been abandoned off the coast of Somalia following their seizure last week of the Hellas Aphrodite, which had been carrying a load of gasoline from India to South Africa. The pirates used the Issamohamadi, a type of traditional ship known across the Persian Gulf as a dhow, as a 鈥渕other ship鈥� for a series of assaults capped by their taking of the tanker.
A team from the ESPS Victoria, a Spanish frigate, boarded the dhow and said the Issamohamadi’s original crew on board were in 鈥済ood condition, safe and free.鈥� Iran has not acknowledged the seizure of the ship.
The pirate group 鈥渙perating in the area has been definitely disrupted,鈥� the EU naval force’s Operation Atalanta said in a statement. EU forces 鈥渉ave gathered evidence and intelligence of the incident that together with the evidence collected on board Merchant Tanker Hellas Aphrodite, will be submitted to support the legal prosecution of the perpetrators.鈥�
Piracy off the Somali coast peaked in 2011, when 237 attacks were reported. Somali piracy in the region that year cost the world鈥檚 economy some $7 billion, with $160 million paid out in ransoms, according to the Oceans Beyond Piracy monitoring group.
The threat was diminished by increased international naval patrols, a strengthening central government in Somalia, and other efforts.
However, Somali pirate attacks have over the last year, in part due to the insecurity caused by Yemen鈥檚 Houthi rebels launching over in the Gaza Strip. The Houthis have signaled they’ve in Gaza.
In 2024, there were seven reported incidents off Somalia, according to the International Maritime Bureau. So far this year, by Somali pirates. The Hellas Aphrodite represents the first commercial ship seized by pirates off Somalia since May 2024.
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
