On November 3, a chemical tanker was attacked by pirates about 330 nautical miles east of Mogadishu, but armed security personnel successfully defended the ship.

The vessel, named MV Stolt Sagaland and registered under the Cayman Islands flag, was approached early in the morning by four unauthorized individuals trying to board from a small boat. A larger mothership was located about 5 nautical miles away during the incident.

According to a threat bulletin from Combined Maritime Forces and EUNAVFOR Operation ATALANTA, "People on the small boat fired several rounds from AK47-type weapons at the MV. The security forces aboard the MV Stolt Sagaland returned fire, causing the small boat to abandon its boarding attempt."

The operator of the vessel, Stolt-Nielsen, confirmed that the attack was unsuccessful, stating, "Our crew is safe after responding quickly and professionally to the incident."

After the confrontation, the small boat, which had a gray and white hull, retreated towards the mothership after warning shots were fired. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reported that all crew members are safe and that the vessel is now heading to its next port.

EUNAVFOR ATALANTA classified the attack as piracy and noted that it is "HIGHLY LIKELY that the Iranian hijacked dhow reported on 28/10/25 (see IRTB 047) was used as the mothership for this incident." This dhow is believed to be named ISSAMOHAMADI and is currently not transmitting any AIS signals.

Maritime authorities have advised ships to steer clear of a 100-nautical-mile area from the attack site, where a group of pirates is thought to be active. The bulletin emphasized that "timely and thorough reporting of incidents and suspicious activity is crucial for a quick response to incidents."

This attack is part of a wider resurgence of Somali piracy that began in November 2023 with several hijackings of dhows. Maritime security experts indicate that pirates often use hijacked dhows as "mother ships" to carry out attacks far offshore in the Indian Ocean.

Operation ATALANTA has recorded numerous incidents in the Somali Basin and the Gulf of Aden in 2024, including four merchant vessel boardings and two notable hijackings. More recently, in January 2025, a Chinese fishing vessel was hijacked off the northeastern coast of Puntland, Somalia.

Authorities are continuing to investigate this incident and have advised vessels to proceed with caution in the area and report any suspicious activities to UKMTO.