At least three commercial vessels have been hijacked off the coast of Somalia in the past week, reviving fears of piracy in waters once considered secure. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) has raised the region’s security risk to “substantial” and advised ships to proceed with caution. The hijackings include the fishing vessel Alkhari-2 on April 20, the oil tanker Honor-25 on April 21 carrying 16,000 barrels of oil with 17 crew from several Asian countries, and the cargo ship Sword on April 26, which remains under pirate control.

Analysts attribute the resurgence to reduced anti-piracy patrols as naval forces are redeployed to address the Iran–US conflict and Houthi unrest in the Red Sea. Rising global oil prices, now exceeding $110 per barrel due to the ongoing wars, have made oil tankers more attractive targets for pirates.

Somalia’s waters were once the world’s most dangerous, causing billions in global economic losses before NATO and EU operations curbed piracy. Experts now warn that those gains are at risk of reversal.