Somali pirates have hijacked an oil tanker off the coast of Yemen, according to multiple Somali security officials that spoke with the BBC.

The Yemeni coastguard earlier said the tanker MT Eureka had been hijacked and was headed towards Somalia. Sources said it was overrun by pirates in the Gulf of Aden, near the port of Qana, News.az reports, citing BBC.

The pirates departed a remote coastal area near the seaside town of Qandala, which sits on the Gulf of Aden, according to three separate security officials from the semi-autonomous Puntland region who spoke with the BBC.

It marks the second hijacking of an oil tanker in the area in a 10-day period, following the hijacking of Honor 25 by Somali pirates on April 22.

Honor 25 was carrying 18,500 barrels of oil bound for Mogadishu.

MT Eureka was sailing on the flag of the west African nation of Togo prior to the hijacking and was overrun by the gunmen at 5:00 AM local time (03:00 BST) this morning, the security official went on to tell the BBC.

It is now sailing in the Gulf of Aden between Yemen and Somalia, and is expected to anchor in Somali waters in the coming hours.

In a separate incident, the United Kingdom Maritime Transportation Operation (UKMTO) reported on Friday that "armed persons" on a "skiff" approached a bulk carrier near Al-Mukala, Yemen.

Those armed persons departed a remote coastal area near the fishing town of Caluula (Alula), according to three separate security officials. Caluula is 209km (130 miles) from where hijackers departed to seize the MT Eureka.

The two separate incidents indicate piracy is expanding across Somalia's vast coastline, which is the longest in mainland Africa at 3,333km (2071 miles).

Today's hijacking marks the fourth successful pirate hijacking in two weeks.

Somali authorities and the European Union Naval Force (EUNAVFOR), which oversees anti piracy operations in Somali waters, are yet to address the latest hijacking.

Somali piracy, which was on the decline since 2011, has surged again since late 2023, when Houthi rebels began attacking ships in the Gulf of Aden and Red Sea. The attacks forced international navies to instead tackle the Houthi threat, thus allowing armed groups on the Somali coast to take advantage of the security lapse.

"The on-going crisis with the pirates is much worse than many realize. There are increasing movements (of armed groups) all over the coast" a security official from the semi-autonomous Puntland region told the BBC.

News.Az 

By Faig Mahmudov