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A U.S.-sanctioned product tanker has been hijacked in the Gulf of Aden and redirected toward Somalia after six armed men boarded and seized control of the vessel, marking the second reported hijacking in the region this week.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said Thursday it received a report of an incident about 136 nautical miles east of Al Mukalla, Yemen. The tanker initially broadcast a distress call on VHF Channel 16 reporting that it was being approached by an unauthorized vessel while traveling west through the Gulf of Aden.
UKMTO later confirmed that six armed individuals had boarded the tanker, taken control and were redirecting it toward Somalia. Authorities are investigating, and vessels in the area have been advised to transit with caution and report suspicious activity.
The vessel has been identified by maritime security sources as the 32,200-dwt product tanker Sibu 1 (IMO 9204776). Lloyd's List also identified the vessel as Sibu 1, reporting that its AIS broadcast a distress message reading "PIRATE ONBOARD HELP" before it changed course.
MarineTraffic data cited in information provided to gCaptain showed the tanker had changed its AIS destination to Port Sudan on August 15 and entered the Somalia High Risk Area at 1718 UTC on August 19. Its last position before the reported boarding showed it traveling west-southwest at about 9.3 knots.
Martin Kelly, head of advisory at EOS Risk Group, noted that the vessel is sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control and has been identified by United Against Nuclear Iran as part of Iran's so-called "ghost fleet."
The tanker was sanctioned by OFAC in December 2025 as part of a broader crackdown on Iran's sanctions-evading shadow fleet. At the time, the vessel was identified as Seamull and managed by UAE-based Qatrat Alnada Almasi Ship Management. Treasury said Seamull had transported Iranian petroleum products, including naphtha and gasoil, on multiple occasions and had also called at Houthi-controlled ports in Yemen.
Kelly said the incident, coming days after the hijacking of the cargo ship Lutuf, points to a broader resurgence of Somali piracy in the Gulf of Aden.
The Sibu 1 incident comes just three days after eight armed attackers seized Lutuf near Somalia's Puntland coast. UKMTO said that vessel was boarded approximately four nautical miles south of Mareeyo, Somalia, on Monday.
The two incidents underscore a renewed piracy threat around Somalia despite the southwest monsoon, which typically limits pirates' ability to operate far offshore. A recent Joint Maritime Information Center assessment said rough offshore conditions were restricting extended-range skiff operations but warned that sheltered coastal waters continued to provide opportunities for pirate groups.
The region had already seen several vessel seizures this year coinciding with the Strait of Hormuz crisis and resurgence of Houthi attacks on shipping, including the product tanker Honour 25 and general cargo ship Sward, which were hijacked off Somalia in April.
