After an operation lasting more than 48 hours, Indian naval forces rescued 20 crew members from a hijacked Iranian fishing vessel in the Arabian Sea, more than 3,000 kilometres from Mumbai. The rescue brought an end to the capture of the boat, named the Azini, which armed pirates had seized off the northeastern coast of Somalia on October 29.
The mission combined air and sea operations across a vast stretch of open water. Indian forces tracked the hijacked vessel using a warship and maritime surveillance aircraft before commandos moved in. An Indian Air Force C-17 transport plane also airdropped additional marine commandos to secure the ship. Officials noted that intervening quickly was critical because pirates frequently convert captured fishing boats into floating bases to launch attacks on commercial cargo ships further out at sea.
Accounts of the operation's outcome included some differing details. India's Defense Ministry stated that the operation concluded without casualties or injuries, though it did not specify whether that assessment covered everyone aboard or only the freed crew. Meanwhile, an official from Somalia's Puntland Maritime Police Force reported that Indian forces disarmed 12 suspected pirates, confiscated their phones, and released them ashore in northeastern Somalia with minor injuries reported among those who landed. Puntland authorities had also previously counted 21 Iranian crew members rather than 20.
The hijacking reflects a recent resurgence of Somali piracy across the Gulf of Aden and the western Indian Ocean, where several commercial vessels have been attacked or seized since April. These renewed raids have added to shipping risks across a region already facing severe transport disruptions from Middle Eastern conflicts, forcing many cargo vessels and oil tankers into longer, more expensive voyages around the African continent.