Pirates at it again off coast of Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Armed men are demanding a ransom for the release of an oil tanker they have seized off the coast of Somalia, and the crew is being held captive, the European Union anti- piracy operation announced late Tuesday.

An EU Naval Force statement said the ship’s master was contacted and confirmed that armed men were aboard the Comoros-flagged tanker Aris 13.

Monday’s hijacking was the first such seizure of a large commercial vessel off Somalia since 2012. It came as a surprise to the global shipping industry, as patrols by the navies of NATO countries, as well as China, India and Iran, had suppressed Somali pirate hijackings for several years.

However, the United Nations warned in October that the situation was fragile and that Somali pirates “possess the intent and capability to resume attacks.” NATO ended its anti- piracy mission off Somalia in December.

A Somali pirate who said he was in touch with the armed men aboard the tanker said the amount of ransom to demand had not yet been decided.

Bile Hussein said the armed men have locked most of the crew in one room and cut off communication lines.

The Aris 13, manned by eight Sri Lankan sailors, was carrying fuel from Djibouti to Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, when it was approached by men in two skiffs, said John Steed, the director of Oceans Beyond Piracy. The ship’s master issued a mayday alert.

An official in Somalia’s semiautonomous state of Puntland said more than two dozen men boarded the ship off the country’s northern coast, an area known to be used by weapons smugglers and members of the al- Qaida- linked extremist group al-Shabab. The official spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The ship is on the coast now and more armed men boarded the ship,” said Salad Nur, a local elder.