MOGADISHU, Somalia — The United Arab Emirates has condemned the hijacking of an oil tanker carrying Egyptian sailors after it was seized off the coast of Yemen and forced toward Somali waters, describing the incident as a direct threat to maritime security and global trade routes.
In a statement, the UAE foreign ministry said the attack endangered the safety of international shipping lanes and underscored the need for stronger international cooperation against piracy and organized crime in strategic waterways.
The ministry expressed “full solidarity” with Egypt and the families of the kidnapped sailors, backing efforts aimed at securing the crew’s safety and release.
The vessel, identified by Egyptian authorities as the Togolese-flagged tanker M/T Eureka, was reportedly intercepted after departing Yemeni waters and later directed toward the coast of Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region.
Egypt’s foreign ministry said eight Egyptian sailors were aboard the tanker and that Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty had instructed Egypt’s embassy in Mogadishu to closely monitor the situation and provide support to the crew.
Cairo said it was coordinating with Somali authorities to secure the release of the sailors and ensure their safety.
According to relatives of some crew members, the tanker — operated by a Sharjah-based company — had departed from the Emirati port of Fujairah en route to Yemen before being seized by suspected pirates on May 2 and redirected toward the Somali coast.
Family members said the hijackers had demanded a ransom of $3.5 million and threatened to kill the crew if negotiations failed.
The relatives appealed to the Egyptian government and international organizations to intensify efforts to rescue the sailors and pressure the ship’s owner to accelerate negotiations for their release.
Reports indicated that the tanker’s crew included sailors of several nationalities, with relatives describing conditions aboard the vessel as dangerous.
The incident has renewed concerns over maritime security in the Gulf of Aden and the western Indian Ocean, areas once plagued by rampant Somali piracy in the late 2000s before international naval patrols sharply reduced attacks.
Maritime security analysts have warned in recent months of a possible resurgence in piracy amid regional instability and ongoing tensions affecting key shipping routes linking the Red Sea, the Suez Canal and the Indian Ocean.
