Suspected Somali pirates seize a new Yemeni fishing boat in second recent attack
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates: Suspected Somali pirates have seized another Yemeni fishing boat off the Horn of Africa, authorities said.In a statement late Tuesday, a European naval force known as EUNAVFOR Atalanta said the attack targeted a dhow, a traditional ship that plies the waters of the Mideast, off the town of Eyl in Somalia.It said the attack Monday remained under investigation. It comes 10 days after another pirate attack on another Yemeni fishing boat which ultimately ended with the pirates fleeing and the mariners on board being recovered unhurt.Piracy off the Somali coast peaked in 2011 when 237 attacks were reported. Somali piracy in the region at the time cost the world's economy some $7 billion — with $160 million paid out in ransoms, according to the Oceans Beyond Piracy monitoring group.The threat was diminished by increased international naval patrols, a strengthening central government in Mogadishu, Somalia's capital, and other efforts.However, Somali pirate attacks have resumed at a greater pace over the last year, in part due to the insecurity caused by Yemen's Houthi rebels launching their attacks in the Red Sea corridor over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.In 2024, there were seven reported incidents off Somalia, according to the International Maritime Bureau.
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Arab News
6 hours ago
- Arab News
Gaza-bound aid boat with Greta Thunberg on board arrives in Israel after its seizure
JERUSALEM: A Gaza-bound aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists arrived at an Israeli port Monday after Israeli forces stopped and detained them — enforcing a longstanding blockade of the Palestinian territory that has been tightened during the Israel-Hamas war. The boat, accompanied by Israel's navy, arrived in Ashdod in the evening, according to Israel's Foreign Ministry. It published a photo on social media of Thunberg after disembarking. The 12 activists were undergoing medical checks to ensure they are in good health, the ministry said. They were expected to be held at a detention facility in Ramle before being deported, according to Adalah, a legal rights group representing them. The activists had set out to protest Israel's military campaign in Gaza, which is among the deadliest and most destructive since World War II, and its restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid. Both have put the territory of around 2 million Palestinians at risk of famine. The Freedom Flotilla Coalition, which organized the voyage, said the activists were 'kidnapped by Israeli forces' while trying to deliver desperately needed aid. 'The ship was unlawfully boarded, its unarmed civilian crew abducted and its life-saving cargo — including baby formula, food and medical supplies — confiscated,' it said in a statement. It said the ship was seized in international waters about 200 kilometers (120 miles) from Gaza, and Adalah asserted that Israel had 'no legal authority' to take it over. Israel's Foreign Ministry portrayed the voyage as a public relations stunt, saying on social media that 'the 'selfie yacht' of the 'celebrities' is safely making its way to the shores of Israel.' It said the activists would return to their home countries and the aid would be sent to Gaza through established channels. It circulated footage of what appeared to be Israeli military personnel handing out sandwiches and water to the activists, who were wearing life vests. Israel says boat was carrying minimal aid Israeli officials said the flotilla carried what amounted to less than a truckload of aid. 'This wasn't humanitarian aid. It's Instagram activism,' Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer said. 'Meanwhile, Israel has delivered over 1,200 truckloads in the last two weeks. So who's really feeding Gaza and who's really feeding their own ego? Greta was not bringing aid, she was bringing herself.' After its 2½-month total blockade aimed at pressuring Hamas, Israel started allowing some basic aid into Gaza last month, but humanitarian workers and experts have warned of famine unless the blockade is lifted and Israel ends its military offensive. About 600 trucks of aid entered daily during the ceasefire that Israel ended in March. An attempt last month by Freedom Flotilla to reach Gaza by sea failed after two drones attacked the vessel in international waters off Malta, organizers said. The group blamed Israel for the attack, which damaged the ship's front section. Rights group questions Israel's seizure The Madleen set sail from Sicily a week ago. Along the way, it stopped on Thursday to rescue four migrants who had jumped overboard to avoid being detained by Libya'a coast guard. 'I urge all my friends, family and comrades to put pressure on the Swedish government to release me and the others as soon as possible,' Thunberg said in a prerecorded message released after the ship was halted. Adalah, the rights group, said in a statement that 'the arrest of the unarmed activists, who operated in a civilian manner to provide humanitarian aid, amounts to a serious breach of international law.' Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament who is of Palestinian descent, was among those on board. She has been barred from entering Israel because of her opposition to Israeli policies toward the Palestinians. She was among six French citizens on board. French President Emmanuel Macron called for consular protection and the repatriation of the French citizens. 'Most of all, France calls for a ceasefire as quickly as possible and the lifting of the humanitarian blockade. This is a scandal, unacceptable, that is playing out in Gaza. What's been happening since early March is a disgrace, a disgrace,' Macron said Next week, Macron co-hosts a conference at the UN on a two-state solution and recently said France should move toward recognizing a Palestinian state. Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard said the crew and passengers were aware of the risks, Swedish news agency TT reported. Stenergard said the ministry's assessment is that no one was in danger and there was no need for consular support. An 18-year blockade on Gaza Israel and Egypt have imposed varying degrees of a blockade on Gaza since Hamas seized power from rival Palestinian forces in 2007. Israel says the blockade is needed to prevent Hamas from importing arms, while critics say it amounts to collective punishment of Gaza's Palestinian population. Israel sealed off Gaza from all aid in the early days of the war ignited by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, but later relented under US pressure. In early March, shortly before Israel ended a ceasefire with Hamas, the country again blocked all imports, including food, fuel and medicine. Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the Oct. 7 attack and abducted 251 hostages. Most have been released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Hamas still holds 55 hostages, more than half believed to be dead. Israel's military campaign has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which doesn't distinguish between civilians and combatants but has said that women and children make up most of the dead. The war has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and displaced around 90 percent of the population, leaving people almost completely dependent on international aid. Efforts to broker another truce have been deadlocked for months. Hamas says it will only release the remaining hostages in exchange for a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal. Israel has vowed to continue the war until all the captives are returned and Hamas is defeated, or disarmed and exiled.
Asharq Al-Awsat
20 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Türkiye Says Israeli Raid on Gaza Aid Boat Violated International Law
Türkiye on Monday condemned Israel's seizure of a Gaza-bound aid vessel which it said was carrying Turkish citizens as well as activist Greta Thunberg among its 12-strong crew, calling the move a "clear violation of international law". The Turkish Foreign Ministry said the intervention threatened maritime security and "once again demonstrates that Israel is acting as a terror state." Israeli naval forces boarded and seized a charity vessel that had tried to break a naval blockade of the war-torn Gaza Strip on Monday and the boat with its crew of 12, including activist Greta Thunberg, is now heading to a port in Israel. The British-flagged yacht, Madleen, which is operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition, was aiming to deliver a symbolic amount of aid to Gaza later on Monday and raise international awareness of the humanitarian crisis there.
Asharq Al-Awsat
20 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Israeli Forces Seize Gaza Aid Boat Carrying Greta Thunberg
Israeli naval forces boarded and seized a charity vessel that had tried to break a naval blockade of the war-torn Gaza Strip on Monday and the boat with its crew of 12, including activist Greta Thunberg, is now heading to a port in Israel. The British-flagged yacht, Madleen, which is operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition, was aiming to deliver a symbolic amount of aid to Gaza later on Monday and raise international awareness of the humanitarian crisis there. However, the boat was boarded during the night before it could reach shore, the FFC said on its Telegram account. The Israeli Foreign Ministry later confirmed that it was under Israeli control. "The 'selfie yacht' of the 'celebrities' is safely making its way to the shores of Israel. The passengers are expected to return to their home countries," the ministry wrote on X. All passengers were safe and unharmed, the ministry later added. "They were provided with sandwiches and water. The show is over." Among the 12-strong crew are Swedish climate campaigner Thunberg and Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament. CREW ARRESTED "The crew of the Freedom Flotilla was arrested by the Israeli army in international waters around 2 a.m.," Hassan posted on X. A photograph showed the crew seated on the boat, all wearing life jackets, with their hands in the air. The yacht is carrying a small shipment of humanitarian aid, including rice and baby formula. The Foreign Ministry said it would be taken to Gaza. "The tiny amount of aid that was on the yacht and not consumed by the 'celebrities' will be transferred to Gaza through real humanitarian channels," it wrote. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the military on Sunday to prevent the Madleen from reaching Gaza, calling the mission a propaganda effort in support of Hamas. Katz said he had instructed that upon the boat's arrival at Ashdod port, the activists will be shown videos of atrocities committed during the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on southern Israel, which triggered the Gaza war. Hamas condemned the seizure of the boat as "state terrorism" and said it salutes its activists. Israel imposed a naval blockade on the coastal enclave after Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007 to stop weapons from reaching the armed group, which is designated as a terrorist organization by Israel and the West. The blockade has remained in place through multiple conflicts, including the current war, which began when Hamas-led fighters rampaged through southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing more than 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, by Israeli tallies. Israel's retaliatory offensive against Hamas has since killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, according to health officials in Hamas-run Gaza and left its more than 2 million population largely displaced and at risk of famine, according to the United Nations. The United Nations' special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, has supported the FFC operation and on Sunday, urged other boats to challenge the Gaza blockade. "Madleen's journey may have ended, but the mission isn't over. Every Mediterranean port must send boats with aid & solidarity to Gaza," she wrote on X.
