The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is urging immediate action to tackle the rising issue of piracy in the Gulf of Aden, where six merchant ships and over 90 sailors are currently being held hostage.
IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez issued this warning after the hijacking of the tanker Seamull, also known as Sibu 1, on August 20. This was the second vessel taken by suspected Somali pirates within just a few days.
“With this latest hijacking, another ship has joined the others being held by pirates and armed thieves in increasingly dangerous waters,” Dominguez stated.
“More than 90 innocent sailors are in captivity, living under constant fear and uncertainty,” he continued, calling for their immediate and unconditional release.
This warning comes as Somali piracy, which had faded from the news in recent years, is again becoming a concern for ships traveling between the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden.
According to the latest update from the Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC), six vessels remain captive in the area: Honour 25, Sward, Eureka, Asana, Lutuf, and Seamull.
Two of these hijackings happened within the last week.
The general cargo ship Lutuf was captured on August 17 when eight armed men boarded the ship about four nautical miles south of Mareeyo on Somalia's Puntland coast.
Three days later, six armed men took control of the Seamull around 136 nautical miles east of Al Mukalla, Yemen, while it was heading west across the Gulf of Aden. The attackers redirected the ship towards Somalia.
The 32,200-dwt tanker, previously named Sibu 1, reportedly sent out a distress signal stating “PIRATE ONBOARD HELP” over AIS before changing its course. It is currently anchored off Somalia's east coast, according to JMIC.
Seamull was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department in December 2025 as part of a larger effort to crack down on tankers evading Iran's sanctions. The Treasury noted that the vessel had transported Iranian oil products several times and had visited ports controlled by the Houthi in Yemen.
The recent hijackings follow several successful seizures earlier this year. Honour 25 and Sward have been held captive since April, while Eureka was hijacked in May and Asana in July.
This timing is significant because the southwest monsoon usually makes it hard for Somali pirates to operate far offshore in small boats. JMIC mentioned that rough conditions still limit the range of skiff operations, but pirates continue to find ways to work in sheltered coastal areas.
The capture of Seamull far out in the Gulf of Aden shows that pirates can still reach ships beyond Somalia's immediate coastline.
JMIC currently rates the threat level in the Gulf of Aden as “substantial,” which includes piracy as well as ongoing threats from Houthi attacks. The Somali coast and the Somali Basin are considered to have a “moderate” threat level.
Dominguez cautioned that piracy might be overlooked as governments and naval forces shift their focus to other conflicts affecting shipping in the area.
“While international attention has turned to other regions with rising tensions, we cannot ignore the return of piracy in the Gulf of Aden and surrounding waters,” he emphasized.
He urged flag and coastal nations to prepare ships for these threats and to continue following best management practices and IMO security guidelines.
Dominguez also called for renewed international naval cooperation, highlighting the coordinated efforts that previously brought the Somali piracy crisis under control.
“The international community has successfully faced this threat before, and it must do so again,” he added.
The resurgence of piracy adds another security challenge for ships operating in the Middle East and western Indian Ocean, where crews are already dealing with Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, as well as ongoing disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz.