Somalia: Puntland maritime police on alert as piracy cases resurge

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Patrols have been intensified along the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean coastline within Somalia, authorities said, with the country's police force insisting on cooperation to eliminate pirates within the region, following a reported attempt on Sunday by pirates to hijack a vessel.

Abdullahi Mohamed Ahmed, the Puntland Marine Police Force [PMPF] commander told the Associated Press that patrols have been doubled in the region. The police, he added, are monitoring activities in the waters for 24 hours to avert planned raids by the pirates.

“Here now we have many challenges. We had initially dealt with the pirates and stopped their activities, but recently on top of al-Shabab and IS we have had to look out for them again,”

Early this week, the US military seized five Somali pirates who had attempted to hijack an Israeli-linked vessel along the Gulf of Aden, off the coast of Yemen. The pirates are currently in the custody of the US Navy team, Pentagon confirmed.

British and American teams said the armed attackers seized the Liberian-flagged Central Park, managed by Zodiac Maritime, in the Gulf of Aden. The pirates had attempted to escape using speedboats but surrendered after being pursued by the American destroyer the USS Mason, a statement from the U.S. Military’s central command said.

Yemeni Houthi rebels have conducted recent attacks on commercial vessels on the Gulf of Eden, seen as part of a rise in violence in the region due to the Israel-Hamas war. But the Pentagon said this latest attempt was carried out by Somali nationals, AP reports.

Besides the Sunday incident, another piracy attempt was reported in Qandala within the Bari region of Puntland where suspected pirates disappeared with a boat belonging to local fishermen. Although the incident was successful, no injuries were reported.

“Puntland State is all alone in this security effort. No assistance from the African Union Mission in Somalia, the European Union, or any international assistance. But we are doing our best,” Mohamed said.

Somalia is also fighting Al-Shabaab militants who have controlled some parts of the country for almost two decades. Currently, the Somali National Army is engaged in the fight against Al-Shabaab, with the country projecting that by December 2024, the militants would have fallen.

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