Hijacked Tanker Off Yemen Deepens Fears of Somali Piracy Resurgence

European naval forces have confirmed the hijacking of an oil tanker off Yemen after armed individuals reportedly boarded the vessel near Qana Port before steering it toward the Gulf of Aden and the Somali coast, marking the latest sign that piracy threats in the western Indian Ocean are rapidly escalating again.

According to a new alert issued Thursday by the Maritime Security Centre Indian Ocean, armed individuals boarded the tanker EUREKA (IMO: 1022823) at approximately 0500 UTC on May 2 while the vessel was anchored off Qana Port in Yemen’s Shabwa province.

The advisory said the vessel was subsequently taken under