MOGADISHU // Pirates have hijacked an oil tanker off the coast of Somalia, the first such seizure of a large commercial vessel on the crucial global trade route since 2012.
The reported seizure on Monday of the Aris 13 came as a surprise to the global shipping industry as patrols by the navies of Nato countries, as well as China, India and Iran, had suppressed Somali pirate hijackings for several years.
However, the United Nations warned in October that the situation was fragile and that Somali pirates “possess the intent and capability to resume attacks.” One expert said some in the region had let down their guard as the situation calmed down.
“The pirates never went away, they were just doing other forms of crime and if any of the measures reduce (which they have, or ships take risks) the pirates are poised to exploit the weakness,” said John Steed, director of Oceans Beyond Piracy.
The Aris 13, manned by eight Sri Lankan sailors, was carrying fuel from Djibouti to Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, when it was approached by men in two skiffs, Mr Steed said.
An official in the semiautonomous state of Puntland said more than two dozen men boarded the ship off Somalia’s northern coast, an area known to be used by weapons smugglers and members of Al Shabab, the extremist group linked to Al Qaeda.
The ship was anchored off the town of Alula on Tuesday, said Salad Nur, a local elder. “The ship is on the coast now and more armed men boarded the ship.” e said he ship had been hijacked by young fishermen, some of whom were formerly pirates.
Somali pirates usually hijack ships and crew for ransom but according to another official based in the Middle East with knowledge of the incident, no ransom demand had been made. “The vessel’s captain reported to the company they were approached by two skiffs and that on one of them they could see armed personnel on board. The ship changed course quite soon after that report and is now anchored.”
A spokeswoman for the European Union Naval Force operation off Somalia, Flt. Lt. Louise Tagg, said an investigation was underway.
Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministry said it was in contact with shipping agents and officials abroad for more information to help ensure the crew’s “safety and welfare.”
It is unclear who owns the ship or where it was flagged. Mr Steed said it was UAE-owned and Sri Lankan-flagged. According to the Equasis shipping data website, managed by the French transport ministry, it listed the Aris as owned by Panama company Armi Shipping and managed by Aurora Ship Management in the UAE. Marine traffic lists the Aris as a Comoros-flagged ship.
A UN shipping database shows the Aris 13 is owned by a company called Armi Shipping SA, whose address is listed care of Aurora Ship Management FZE, a company based in Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates. Calls and emails to Aurora went unanswered.
Australian government records from 2014 list the ship’s owner as Flair Shipping Trading FZE in the UAE. Argyrios Karagiannis, the managing director of Flair Shipping, declined to comment.
An address listed for Flair Shipping in Dubai’s high-rise neighbourhood of Jumeirah Lake Towers was for a company called Flair Oil Trading DMCC. A woman who answered the door on Tuesday said the firm was not connected to the ship bs directed queries to another office. There was no reply there but Mr Karagiannis was then seen entering the office of Flair Oil Trading DMCC.
“We will not be releasing any information,” he said before shutting the door.
Piracy off the coast of Somalia has lessened in recent years after an international effort to patrol near the country, whose weak central government has been trying to assert itself after a quarter-century of conflict. In that time, concerns about piracy off Africa’s coast have largely shifted to the Gulf of Guinea.
But frustrations have been rising among local fishermen, including former pirates, at what they say are foreign fishermen illegally fishing in local waters.
“They have been sailing through the ocean in search for a foreign ship to hijack since yesterday morning and found this ship and boarded it,” said Mr Nur, the local elder. “Foreign fishermen destroyed their livelihoods and deprived them of proper fishing.”
* Associated Press and Reuters