The Yemeni Coast Guard announced its follow-up on the report received on Saturday morning regarding the incident of the hijacking of the oil tanker M/T EUREKA off the coast of Shabwa governorate.
It explained in a statement that according to preliminary information, the tanker was subjected to an armed robbery carried out by unknown elements, where it was boarded and controlled, before heading towards the Gulf of Aden towards the Somali coast.
Reuters quoted the agency as saying that the incident occurred about 84 nautical miles southwest of the port of Mukalla on Yemen's southern coast, without providing further information on the nature of the approach or damage to the site.
"Coordination has been made with international partners and concerned authorities in the Gulf of Aden, and this has resulted in the location of the tanker, and work is underway to follow up on it and take the necessary measures to try to recover it and ensure the safety of its crew," the Coast Guard said.
New updates on the M/T Eureka tanker
According to the latest security information available today, Saturday, May 2 , 2026, additional information is emerging about the status of the crew of the oil tanker M/T EUREKA and its route inside Somali territorial waters, amid growing fears of the expansion of piracy activity in the region.
Initial reports indicate that the tanker is carrying a crew of between 17 and 25 people of various Asian nationalities, most notably: Pakistan, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar, and despite being under the control of the militants, military reports confirm that the health condition of the crew is stable so far, with no injuries or emergency cases recorded.
Multinational crew on board
The tanker was spotted penetrating further into Somali territorial waters, specifically between Hafoon and Bandar Bella in the northeastern province of Barre, an area that is one of the most prominent hotbeds of traditional piracy activity.
According to security assessments, the attack was carried out by about 10 gunmen who used Skiffs to forcibly board the ship and take control of the cockpit and engine room within a few minutes.
Maritime security bodies, including the UKMTO, have warned that pirates could use the hijacked tanker as a "mother ship" to launch further attacks on commercial vessels in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, a tactic that was previously used at the height of piracy activity more than a decade ago.
Dangerous escalation in hacking activity
The incident comes just days after another vessel was hijacked in the same area, reinforcing signs that Somali piracy networks are back in action, benefiting from a decline in international maritime patrols as a result of the redirecting of military resources to escalating tensions in the Red Sea.
The incident came amid ongoing security tensions in the territorial waters near Yemen, where shipping routes in the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Aden have witnessed similar incidents over the past two years.
These developments prompted the European Union to launch Operation Aspeeds naval military since February 2024, led by Italy, with the aim of protecting ships from attacks by the Ansar Allah Houthi group in Yemen.
On April 25, Britain's Maritime Trade Operations Authority announced the hijacking of an oil tanker off the coast of Somalia.
Pirates hijack ship carrying 16 Syrian sailors
The Syrian Seafarers' Syndicate on the High Seas announced that the merchant ship "Sward" was subjected to a piracy and hijacking off the coast of Somalia, with 16 Syrian sailors on board, and said in a statement published on its social media site on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, that the ship flying the flag of "St. Kitts and Nevis" was carrying a crew of 16 Syrian sailors, which was pirated yesterday in an area located 6 nautical miles northeast of Garacad in Somalia.
In its statement, the Syndicate reassured the families of the sailors that they are all fine, and said that it had opened direct communication channels with the ship's owners since the first hours of the incident, and that all Syrian crew members were fine, and that no injuries or cases of ill-treatment were recorded among them.