MOGADISHU, March 14 (Xinhua) -- Pirates in Somalia's Indian Ocean are reported to have captured a commercial vessel, the first since 2012 raising fears of a possible resurgence of piracy in the Indian Ocean waters off Somalia.
A government official in Puntland region who declined to be named confirmed the incident Tuesday to Xinhua, noting the vessel was heading from Djibouti en route to Mogadishu before the pirates captured it.
"I can confirm to you the vessel is under the control of the pirates. We have information it is from United Arab Emirates. We are still following up on the development," the official said.
The development raises fears over possible return of piracy off the coast of Somalia almost five years after international interventions led to a decline and stop of capture of ships.
A report by the campaign watchdog, Secure Fisheries in 2015 warned of possible return of piracy following what it termed as increased illegal and unregulated fishing in Somali waters.
Local fishermen, the report noted, were getting a fraction of the fish while illegal foreign trawlers were making away with thousands of tonnes of fish.
