Indian Navy’s INS Sumitra has successfully rescued an Iranian-flagged fishing vessel hijacked by pirates along the East coast of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden.

The naval warship was responding to a distress message regarding hijacking of an Iranian-flagged Fishing Vessel (FV) Iman. The FV had been boarded by pirates and its 17-member crew was taken hostage.

“INS Sumitra intercepted the vessel, acted in accordance with the established SOPs to coerce the pirates for the safe release of the crew along with the boat & ensured the successful release of all 17 crew members along with the boat,” the Navy said in a statement. “The FV was subsequently sanitised and released for onward transit.”

Recently, Iran-backed Yemen’s Houthis has been targeting commercial shipping in the Red Sea with missiles and drones after the Israel-Hamas conflict began on October 7.  Several shipping companies have suspended their operations in the Red Sea following the attacks, which have forced mariners to change course and take longer routes around the southern tip of Africa.