Incident Alert – Suspicious Approach by Armed Craft in the Gulf of Aden

Incident Details

UKMTO has reported that a vessel sighted 9 -15 small craft while transiting the Gulf of Aden, 53 nm southwest of Aden, Yemen. It was stated that one of the craft approached the ship to within 3 cables and the crew on the boat were armed. The vessel is proceeding to the next port of call. The ship and crew are reported to be safe.

Fig1. Location of Incident – 53 nm southwest of Aden

Comment. On 23 October, a merchant vessel in the same area was approached by 5 small craft that also closed within 3 cables of the ship before the Armed Security Team (AST) fired warning shots at the craft and the boats left the vicinity.

Assessment. There is no clear information regarding the small craft’s activities at the time of the incident but while it cannot be entirely ruled out, it is improbable that a Pirate Action Group would be operating this far west in the Gulf of Aden. Given the number of small craft involved, it is probable that this incident is a Pattern of Life encounter with local fishermen. Fishermen in the area are known to be armed for self-defence. This incident may be linked to Houthi activity; however, the absence of a detailed description of the craft complicates any assessment of their intent. Similar incidents have been resolved when AST have fired warning shots at approaching craft. We advise ship operators to remain vigilant and implement BMP 5 counter-piracy measures, including the embarkation of an AST when transiting this region. bmp5-low_res.pdf