Overview
- The Malta-flagged Hellas Aphrodite was boarded on Nov. 6 after attackers firing small arms and RPGs targeted the gasoline carrier en route from Sikka, India, to Durban, South Africa.
- All 24 crew members are safe inside the ship’s citadel, according to manager Latsco Marine Management, which activated its emergency response team.
- Operation Atalanta said its assets are close to the tanker’s position more than 1,000 kilometers off Somalia and are ready to take action.
- On Nov. 7 a Marshall Islands-flagged LNG tanker, identified by security sources as Al Thumama, reported an approach by a skiff with three people and escaped by increasing speed.
- Maritime security firms report the pirates are operating from a hijacked Iranian fishing vessel used as a mothership, with this marking the first commercial ship seizure off Somalia since May 2024 after other recent attempts including on the Stolt Sagaland.