Since the start of the war triggered by the United States and Israel, Iran has locked down the Strait of Hormuz. Hundreds of ships are stranded in this waterway through which usually about a fifth of the world’s oil production passes. This disruption is significantly affecting global markets and giving Tehran a major strategic leverage.
In the face of geopolitical risks, carriers are being forced to adapt. Many of them have to sail around the southern tip of Africa to continue their journey. This lengthens their travel time by several weeks and incurs massive expenses. It is estimated that the cost of this route change is about one million dollars per vessel.
Moreover, the cargo ships are passing through a particularly sensitive maritime zone, the Somali Basin, a notorious hotspot for piracy until the mid-2000s. CNN reports that Somali pirates have been taking advantage of the increased traffic for several weeks to hijack commercial vessels.
According to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), two tankers and a cargo ship are currently in the hands of Somali pirates, captured between April 21 and May 2. One of them was diverted off the coast of Yemen and rerouted to Somalia. Pirates are reportedly demanding ten million dollars to release one of the tankers, as per several media sources.
“The recent acts of piracy are opportunistic, as international maritime routes are being altered based on geopolitical crises,” observes Somali lawmaker Mohamed Dini in an interview with American media, warning that piracy networks are forming alliances with Houthi rebels in Yemen, posing a constant threat to the Red Sea.
Off the Somali coast, piracy incidents escalated in the early 2000s following the collapse of the Somali government. Thousands of sailors were captured or targeted, with pirates demanding millions of dollars in ransom. The World Bank estimates that between 2005 and 2012, the total ransom amount ranged from 339 to 413 million dollars.
Pirates attack ships in the Gulf of Aden or even further in the Indian Ocean. In 2011, the peak of the piracy movement, around 212 attacks were recorded. Since then, the threat has diminished, largely due to an international coalition led by NATO securing the area with regular patrols.
A report by Commercial Crimes Services, a branch of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), stated in January that only a few incidents were reported in 2025. “The absence of a large-scale resurgence of Somali piracy continues to demonstrate the strong deterrent effect of sustained naval presence,” the report noted.
