Sheba Intelligence previously warned that piracy was re-emerging around the Gulf of Aden and Somali waters. A new appeal by the International Maritime Organization now gives that warning official weight.

      The International Maritime Organization has called for urgent international action to secure the release of 44 seafarers still held by pirates in Somali waters, amid a renewed rise in piracy, armed robbery and attempted attacks across the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

According to the IMO, 24 piracy-related incidents, armed robberies or attempted attacks have been recorded in the region over the past three months. The organization warned that crews remain exposed to serious humanitarian and security risks, especially as armed groups increasingly use violence, small boats and mother vessels to target commercial shipping.

The IMO statement marks one of the clearest official acknowledgements that piracy is no longer a dormant threat off Somalia. It also reinforces earlier Sheba Intelligence reporting that warned of a gradual return of piracy activity as naval attention shifted toward Houthi threats in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab.

The latest warning comes as maritime authorities continue to investigate an armed attack on a commercial vessel about 30 nautical miles southwest of Yemen’s Hodeidah. UKMTO said the vessel reported coming under attack by unknown armed assailants. Other reports said armed men in a small craft opened fire before withdrawing toward a larger vessel that had reportedly disabled its AIS tracking system. The ship and crew were later reported safe, and no group immediately claimed responsibility. 

The incident highlights a growing grey zone between piracy, armed robbery and conflict-linked maritime attacks. The use of skiffs, firearms, mother vessels and AIS-dark support ships resembles classic piracy tactics, but the location near Yemen’s western coast also places such attacks within a wider Red Sea security environment shaped by Houthi threats, smuggling networks and armed groups operating from both shores.

The Joint Maritime Information Center has also kept the Gulf of Aden threat level at “substantial”, citing eight piracy-related events since June 11. JMIC warned that pirate action group operations remain a strong possibility, particularly near coastal approaches, transit corridors and areas where small craft can operate despite seasonal monsoon conditions. 

The return of Somali piracy has been building for months. In April, maritime monitors reported the hijacking of several vessels off Somalia, including incidents near Garacad, raising fears that pirate networks were testing international response levels after years of reduced activity. Analysts have linked the resurgence to weaker deterrence, stretched regional security forces and the diversion of international naval assets toward the Red Sea crisis. 

For shipping companies, the renewed piracy threat adds another layer of risk to an already unstable corridor. The Red Sea and Gulf of Aden are now facing overlapping threats: Houthi attacks, piracy, armed robbery, smuggling routes and suspicious small-boat activity. This makes incident attribution more difficult and increases the burden on vessels transiting Bab al-Mandab and the approaches to the Somali coast.

The development confirms that maritime insecurity in the region can no longer be viewed only through the lens of the Houthi threat. The IMO’s appeal, the continued detention of 44 seafarers, and the rise in piracy-related incidents indicate that Somali pirate networks are again becoming an operational factor in one of the world’s most sensitive shipping corridors.

For Sheba Intelligence, the latest IMO warning supports the core assessment of its earlier reporting: piracy is returning not as an isolated criminal phenomenon, but as part of a broader breakdown in maritime security across the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab, the Gulf of Aden and Somali waters.