Eight Egyptian sailors are being held at gunpoint somewhere off the coast of Somalia, their families back home receiving desperate WhatsApp messages and falling silent every time the phone rings. The oil tanker M/T Eureka was hijacked over ten days ago, and with ransom talks reportedly collapsed and the shipping company under fire, the clock is ticking.
How the Hijacking Unfolded at Sea
The hijacking unfolded in the early hours of May 2 off the coast of Yemen’s Shabwa province, when armed men believed to be pirates originating from Somalia’s Puntland region stormed the Togolese-flagged tanker and took control of it before redirecting the ship across the Gulf of Aden toward the Somali coastline.
The tanker was carrying a crew of 12 sailors of Egyptian and Indian nationalities, along with a cargo of 2,800 tons of diesel fuel. At least eight of the crew members are believed to be Egyptian nationals.
According to tracking conducted by investigators, the tanker, sailing under the flag of Togo, began its voyage from the port of Fujairah on March 24 and followed a routine route through Oman before reaching the Bir Ali area in Shabwah Governorate on April 30. What happened next changed everything for 12 families.
After reaching the eastern Somali coast, the vessel adopted a “silent sailing” strategy by periodically switching off its tracking systems to conceal its true location while moving. While the vessel was navigationally expected to head toward the Yemeni coast near Bir Ali, the destination records instead indicated it had been redirected toward the Somali port of Bosaso.
Families Plead as Negotiations Fall Apart
The most heartbreaking part of this story is not the geopolitics. It is the messages families are receiving at home in Egypt.
“We have been kidnapped. There is no food or water, and we are surrounded by armed men. Please help spread awareness about our situation on social media,” one of the sailors said in a WhatsApp message.
Ahmed Radi, whose brother is among the kidnapped crew members, said the family last heard from him days ago. He described frightening messages in which the sailors warned that negotiations had stalled and that their situation was becoming increasingly dangerous.
According to relatives, the Somali hijackers demanded USD 3.5 million in ransom and threatened the crew’s lives if talks failed. Another family member accused the shipping company of failing to move quickly enough to secure the sailors’ release, saying the men had effectively been left alone in a life-threatening situation.
Amira Abu Saada, the wife of Egyptian sailor Mohamed Radi, issued an urgent appeal via social media, stating that Somali pirates are demanding a ransom for the release of the vessel.
- Date of hijacking: May 2, 2026, off Yemen’s Shabwa coast
- Crew: 12 sailors, Egyptian and Indian nationals
- Egyptian crew members: 8 confirmed
- Cargo: 2,800 tons of diesel fuel
- Ransom demand: USD 3.5 million
- Vessel flag: Togo
- Current location: Eastern Somali waters, near Puntland region
Egypt and the World React to the Crisis
Egypt is “closely monitoring the hijacking of the tanker M/T Eureka from Yemeni territorial waters, which was taken to Somali territorial waters,” the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty has instructed the embassy in Mogadishu to follow up on the situation of the eight Egyptian sailors aboard the hijacked tanker and work for their swift release. Abdelatty also urged the embassy to communicate “at the highest level” with Somali authorities to ensure the safety and security of the sailors.
Families have appealed directly to the Egyptian government, international maritime organizations, and naval forces operating in the region to intervene before the crisis worsens.
Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the incident as “a flagrant violation of international law” and a “serious threat” to maritime security and international trade. The Qatari MoFA also affirmed the State of Qatar’s “full solidarity with the sisterly Arab Republic of Egypt and with the families of the sailors.”
The United Arab Emirates also condemned the hijacking and expressed solidarity with Egypt and the families of the abducted sailors, calling for stronger international cooperation to combat piracy and protect maritime workers.
Why Somali Piracy Is Surging Again in 2026
The M/T Eureka is not an isolated case. It is a sign of something far bigger happening across these waters right now.
That stretch of sea is now seeing piracy return with a vengeance, with three ships hijacked off Somalia and nearby Yemen in the past three weeks alone. As of May 8, 2026, the Honour 25 and Eureka oil tankers and the cargo ship Sward all remain under pirate control.
The war in Iran is fueling a resurgence in maritime piracy off the coast of Somalia, according to a European Union naval force patrolling the region. Analysts speculate that the diversion of antipiracy patrols since 2023 to the Red Sea to counter attacks by the Yemen-based Houthis in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait has created an opportunity. More recently, naval patrols of some nations that previously helped contain the threat of piracy have been distracted or diverted towards shepherding ships trying to access the Strait of Hormuz.
The surge in petrol prices amid the US-Israel war on Iran has also likely made fuel tankers more valuable to pirates. Brent crude prices have risen by more than 50 percent since the start of the war, and are at more than $110 per barrel.
Faced with the threat of attacks around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, major shipping firms opted instead for the long detour around southern Africa. This diversion adds two to three weeks and thousands of nautical miles to the journey, taking ships right past Somalia’s coastline.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), which provides security information about trade routes to shipping firms, raised the threat levels around the Somalia coast to “substantial” and warned vessels to “transit with caution.”
For years, the US funded development projects in Somalia, especially in coastal communities, to reduce poverty and stop young men from joining pirate groups. Under the current Trump administration, however, nearly all non-security development aid has been suspended. Washington has instead focused on direct counter-terrorism operations against the Islamist militant group al-Shabab.
History offers a stark warning. The World Bank estimated that at its peak, piracy was costing the global economy as much as $18 billion a year. More than 200 attacks were recorded in 2011 alone, according to EU naval force data. The world cannot afford to let that era return.
Right now, eight Egyptian men who left home to earn an honest living at sea are surrounded by armed strangers, with no food, no water, and no certainty about what tomorrow brings. Their families are watching phones and social media for any sign of hope. Every hour that passes without a resolution is an hour that proves how dangerously thin the net of maritime security has become. The world has been here before, and it knows exactly what happens when it looks away.
What do you think should be done to protect sailors and bring these men home safely? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
