Indian Navy Rescues Hijacked Iranian Fishing Boat and 20 Crew Members off Somalia

Indian naval forces have rescued an Iranian fishing vessel and its 20 crew members after a hijacking off the coast of Somalia, following an operation lasting more than 48 hours, India’s Defence Ministry said Tuesday.

The rescue of the vessel, named Azini, was completed on Monday in the Arabian Sea, more than 3,000 kilometres (1,865 miles) from Mumbai, Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said.

An official from the Puntland Maritime Police Force told The Associated Press that Indian forces disarmed 12 suspected Somali pirates, seized their mobile phones and released them. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.

The suspects and two Somali security guards subsequently came ashore at Bandar Bayla in northeastern Somalia, the official said. Three people who arrived had minor injuries, although it was unclear whether they were pirates or security guards.

India’s Defence Ministry said the operation concluded without casualties or injuries but did not clarify whether this referred to everyone aboard or only the rescued crew. It also remained unclear whether the crew stayed on the vessel or were transferred elsewhere.

The operation involved an Indian warship, a maritime surveillance aircraft and marine commandos. An Indian Air Force C-17 transport aircraft also air-dropped additional commandos, the ministry said.

The Azini was hijacked on October 29 between Bandar Bayla and Hafun. A Puntland maritime police officer said on Sunday that the vessel was carrying 21 Iranian crew members and two Somali security guards. The discrepancy between that figure and India’s reported rescue of 20 crew members was not immediately explained.

Indian forces tracked the vessel by air and sea before launching the operation, according to the ministry. Officials had expressed concern that the pirates could use the fishing boat as a floating base to attack commercial shipping.

The Puntland official said regional authorities learned about the rescue only after the operation had been completed.

The incident comes amid a resurgence of Somali piracy across the Gulf of Aden and the western Indian Ocean. By August, pirates had hijacked six commercial vessels since April, including ships operating far from Somalia’s coastline.

Among them was the oil products tanker Sibu 1, which was seized approximately 252 kilometres (136 nautical miles) east of Al-Mukalla in Yemen.

In September, Puntland authorities reported that pirates had killed five crew members aboard the tanker MT Honour 25 before security forces recovered the vessel. It had been held since April, and authorities said they detained 16 suspected pirates.

The renewed piracy threat comes as shipping routes in the region face additional disruptions linked to the Iran war. Attacks in the Strait of Hormuz and threats by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels against Saudi-linked shipping through the Bab al-Mandab Strait have further complicated maritime trade.

These disruptions have forced some vessels to take longer routes, increasing voyage times and tanker costs. Oil shipments diverted around Africa can face journeys up to a month longer.

Although international naval patrols and improved maritime security significantly reduced Somali piracy over the past decade, the latest hijackings have renewed concerns about the threat to international shipping.