On July 19, 2026, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported a vessel hijacking in the Gulf of Aden. The incident occurred as the ship was sailing eastward, approximately 65 nautical miles south of Al Mukalla, Yemen’s Hadramout province. Unidentified individuals boarded the vessel, prompting the UKMTO to classify the situation as a “Hijack” after confirming the ship had been redirected toward Somali territorial waters. Investigations into the incident are currently underway.
Yemen’s Coast Guard stated that they were monitoring the seizure of the Asana oil tanker, located over 26 nautical miles off Hadramout’s coast. According to the Coast Guard, the hijacking was executed by Somali pirates, although no details regarding the vessel’s ownership have been released, and no group has claimed responsibility for the act.
This incident follows a similar occurrence on May 11, when Egypt’s Foreign Ministry confirmed that another oil tanker carrying eight Egyptian sailors was hijacked near Somalia. Just days prior, Yemeni authorities reported the hijacking of yet another vessel with 12 sailors from Egypt and India. Piracy off the Somali coast had significantly declined from 2008 to 2018 but has seen a resurgence since late 2023 amid rising regional tensions.
