European Union naval forces rescued 24 sailors from the Maltese-flagged oil tanker Hellas Aphrodite after it was attacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia on Thursday.

• All 24 crew members were found unharmed in a fortified citadel by a Spanish warship, the ESPS Victoria, operating under the EU’s anti-piracy mission Operation Atalanta.
• The incident involved pirates opening fire with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades before boarding the vessel, which was carrying petrol from India to South Africa.
• This rescue highlights a concerning resurgence of piracy in the area, with seven reported incidents of piracy off Somalia last year, including three hijackings, compared to only one in 2023.