Somalia: Pirates release cargo ship M/V Sward after ransom payment

Somali pirates freed the cargo ship M/V Sward hijacked in April with its 17 crew members on Friday, security sources in the Somali state of Puntland said, claiming a ransom had been paid. The Gulf of Aden and the coasts of Somalia have experienced a resurgence of piracy since April, with at least 15 attacks recorded in 2026, a record since 2013, according to data from the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Pirates seized the M/V Sward on April 26, near the coast of Puntland, with its crew, 15 Syrians and two Indians held hostage since. According to Puntland security sources, it has been used at least twice as a mothership, from which one or more small, fast and maneuverable boats are launched to attack the target.

It was used to board two Iranian fishing boats and the cargo ship M/V Lutuf, since released for ransom, according to these sources. The pirates “released the Sward near Garacad”, a port town in Puntland, on the northeast coast of Somalia, a Puntland security source told AFP. “The crew is still on board but the pirates reached the shore, boarded several vehicles and entered” the locality, added this source. “They received” a ransom “to free the ship,” she said without giving a figure.

“The third payment since April”

The vehicles were waiting on land before the pirates arrived in Garacad aboard the Sward, "which means they were in contact with their network on land while they were at sea," said another Puntland security source. Two other Puntland security sources confirmed this various information to AFP. The pirates who hijacked the M/V Sward, then the Iranian boats and the M/V Lutuf belong to a recently emerged network, according to these sources.

“This is the third payment that the group has received since April,” notes the first source. The Somali federal government - which maintains tense relations with that of Puntland - claims that the Lutuf was released after "sustained military pressure" from the Turkish navy - Ankara is an important partner of Mogadishu - and the Somali army, which destroyed several pirate boats and killed 14 of them.

Four tankers, hijacked this year, currently remain in the hands of pirates near the coast of Somalia: the Honor 25, the Eureka, the Asana and the Seamull, also called Sibu 1. The Seamull, a ship from the Iranian “ghost fleet” accused of exporting Iranian oil, is the target of sanctions from Washington.