Al-Shabaab Militants Kidnap 14 Iranian Sailors in Somalia

An Iranian shipping official and foreign media reported that militants from the Al-Shabaab group in Somalia seized an Iranian fishing vessel and captured its crew and sailors. Asghar Mohammadpour, the director of the Safety and Security Office of the Islamic Republic of Iran's shipping, stated on Wednesday, May 13, that 'apparently this vessel, which belongs to the fisheries of the Islamic Republic of Iran, had technical problems for two or three days in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Somalia.' He added, 'The crew of this fishing vessel consisted of 14 individuals, and after reaching the shore, they were arrested.' Mr. Mohammadpour mentioned, 'This vessel was not a commercial ship or an oil tanker; it was used for fishing and had experienced a technical failure three days ago.' The Associated Press also reported, citing Yasin Malin from the coastal city of Eldar in Somalia, that the Al-Shabaab militant group arrested the sailors of the Iranian fishing vessel, which appeared to have technical issues. Al-Shabaab, which is allied with Al-Qaeda, has not responded to this arrest or provided further details. Al-Shabaab is one of the Somali militant groups that controls parts of southern and central Somalia. The last time an Iranian ship was hijacked off the coast of Somalia was in April of this year, marking the first successful hijacking of a ship by Somali pirates in three years. Over the past years, piracy off the coast of Somalia has significantly increased, leading the United Nations Security Council to call on countries around the world to combat Somali pirates with the issuance of Resolution 1838 on October 7, 2008. The largest piracy incident in Somalia was the hijacking of an oil tanker belonging to Saudi Arabia, which was carrying two million barrels of oil worth $100 million. Iranian vessels have repeatedly been targeted by Somali pirates, and dozens of Iranian sailors have been taken hostage. Since 2009, Iran has sent its warships to the Gulf of Aden to protect vessels from pirate attacks.