Maritime mission: Yemeni fishing boat released days after being hijacked off the coast of Somalia

The European Union's naval mission Atalanta announced the release of a Yemeni fishing boat days after it was hijacked off the coast of Somalia.

Atlanta said in a statement on Friday that the pirates who hijacked the Yemeni boat on March 16 abandoned it in the vicinity of Dinoda, south of the site where the incident occurred.

On March 16, pirates seized a Yemeni-flagged fishing boat called Al-Hidaya off Dordora, near Eyl, on the northern coast of Puntland, Somalia, according to the mission.

The statement explained that the European Union Naval Forces in "Atalanta" launched a friendly operation to gather information from the boat's crew (eight), who hold Somali nationality, and collected evidence about the kidnapping operation.

The statement indicated that this is the fourth incident involving fishing vessels subjected to piracy within Somali territorial waters, three of which have involved Yemeni-flagged fishing boats since the beginning of this year.

The statement stressed that the commitment and effectiveness of EU Naval Forces Atalanta and its partners in regional and international maritime security are essential to resolving these incidents that impede maritime safety and freedom of navigation in the region.

The statement reiterated that EUNAVFOR Atalanta will remain vigilant against any piracy incidents in its area of operations to ensure maritime security. It strongly urged merchant and other vessels at risk to register with its Voluntary Registration System ( VRS ), to ensure the highest levels of monitoring and response by Atalanta and its partners in the face of maritime security threats.