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Asana hijacked off Yemen
Armed assailants seized the chemical tanker Asana off Yemen’s southern coast in the Gulf of Aden on Friday and took control of the vessel, maritime security officials said.
Reuters reported that the incident appeared linked to Somali piracy rather than Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi militia, and ship tracking data showed the small tanker listed the Somali port of Bosaso as its next destination.
UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said a vessel was boarded by “unauthorized personnel” while transiting east in the Gulf of Aden, 65 nautical miles south of Yemen’s Al Mukalla port.
The vessel issued a distress call at around 0620 GMT on Friday and did not have an armed security team when the incident occurred, British maritime security group Ambrey said.
A South Korean warship was in the area to assist, an official with the European Union’s Aspides naval mission told Reuters.
Conflicting distances and response
Al Jazeera said the Asana was seized about 26 nautical miles (48km) off Hadramawt province on Friday, while UKMTO cited military sources and said there was an “illegal boarding” 65 nautical miles (120km) south of the port of Mukalla.
The Yemeni coastguard said Yemeni authorities were coordinating with international partners, and naval vessels including a Yemeni coastguard boat were reported heading toward the ship while aircraft flew reconnaissance sorties overhead.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported in an alert that a vessel had been boarded by “unauthorized personnel” near the port of Mukalla in the Gulf of Aden, and a South Korean naval ship responded to assist.
Vanguard said, “Details regarding the number of assailants, the circumstances of the boarding, and the status of the vessel and crew remain unclear,” as efforts were under way to determine what happened.
Al Jazeera added that the attack was the latest in a series of hijackings to re-emerge in the region this year, with the Asana seized in one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.
Piracy stakes for shipping
The Regional Maritime Information Exchange Center, linked with Yemen’s transport ministry, said the incident bears “clear indications of an act of piracy aimed at detaining the ship and its crew for ransom,” and said the vessel remained under complete control of the armed men.
“An oil tanker has been seized off the coast of Yemen, in an attack the country’s coastguard says was carried out by Somali pirates”
Al Jazeera reported that the Gulf of Aden feeds into the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, and said “Roughly 12 to 15 percent of global trade by value passes through the canal each year.”
Al Jazeera also said Somali piracy had been largely dormant for more than a decade until this year, and noted that between 2005 and 2012 Somali pirates were blamed for more than 1,000 attacks worth approximately $400 million in ransom payments.
The Marine News Magazine account said attempted attacks in the Gulf of Aden have risen in recent weeks, adding concerns for safety in the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz and boosting risks for critical energy shipments.
Kaja Kallas, speaking in Djibouti, said the Aspides mission alone has protected more than 670 merchant vessels and rescued 128 seafarers in under two and a half years, tying the Asana case to broader maritime-security operations.
