Turkish and Somali forces have rescued a cargo ship that had been seized by pirates off the coast of Puntland, a semi-autonomous state in Somalia, local authorities announced.
In a statement posted on social media platform X on Saturday, Somalia's Defense Ministry said 14 pirates were killed during the operation to free the Cameroon-flagged vessel MV Latuf. Four pirate boats were also destroyed.
The ministry said that "continuous pressure from the forces eventually forced the remaining pirates to abandon the ship," allowing them to take control of the vessel.
The rescue operation was carried out under a defense cooperation agreement between Somalia and Turkey aimed at enhancing maritime security, protecting Somalia's coastline, and combating piracy.
The Somali Defense Ministry did not provide details on casualties or the condition of the crew members aboard.
A local elder, Abdullahi Warsame, from the Jiifle community in the Godob Jiraan district of Puntland's Nugal region, told the Associated Press that the ship and its crew had been freed.
The MV Latuf departed from Turkey's Tekirdag port in late July. The vessel was seized by pirates on August 17 in waters off the Nugal region of Puntland, a semi-autonomous federal state in northeastern Somalia.
According to the Marine Traffic website, the cargo ship has since resumed its journey to its declared destination of Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania.
Pirates once wreaked havoc off the Somali coast in the 2000s, peaking in 2011, before being curbed by international naval deployments and new protective measures for commercial vessels.
However, attacks have resurged since April, with at least 15 incidents off Somalia's coast this year—the highest since 2013—according to data from the International Maritime Organization. At least five cargo ships have been taken hostage, the most recent seized on August 20 off the coast of Yemen.
