# 2 hijacked ships with 22 Indians: Sonowal says all agencies working

2026-08-25T18:41:49+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk

Corroboration: 2 independent outlets

Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said all concerned agencies are working day and night to ensure the safety of Indian seafarers after two commercial vessels carrying 22 Indian nationals were hijacked off Yemen and Somalia. Sonowal said the government has ordered the Directorate General of Maritime Administration to set up a dashboard for real-time tracking of Indian seafarers on each vessel in the region, regardless of the ship's flag. The Indian crew members aboard both hijacked vessels are safe, a ministry official said on August 21. The Eritrea-flagged tanker M.T. Sibu 1, with 16 Indian crew among 20 aboard, was hijacked on August 20 in the Gulf of Aden. Six armed pirates have taken control of the vessel, a shipping agency reported. The Cameroon-flagged M/V Lutuf, with six Indian crew among 10, was hijacked on August 17 off Somalia's Puntland. Separately, the Indian Navy on August 25 monitored the safe transit of merchant vessels MV Union Mariner and MV Dagher through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, amid ongoing US-Iran tensions. India is the world's second-largest supplier of seafarers, supplying 311,936, according to the 2026 BIMCO-ICS report. Piracy off Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden has increased this year.

## Indian Opinion Analysis

The Hindu Businessline reports the Navy's escort mission first, casting Indian naval capability as the lead. The Print, using PTI, puts minister Sonowal's statement first, framing the government as responding actively to a crisis. The omission from The Print is concrete operational detail: no mention of the escort or Navy assets. The Businessline omits any government accountability language, such as Sonowal's dashboard directive. The difference produces two separate stories: one of a government in control, the other of a Navy already doing its job. The core fact both agree on is that hijacked Indian seafarers remain safe. The Indian Navy has already escorted two merchant vessels through the Bab-el-Mandeb on August 25.

## Coverage

Coverage: 2 sources, 1 pro-government, 1 neutral
- theprint.in (pro government) <https://theprint.in/economy/all-concerned-agencies-working-day-and-night-to-ensure-safety-for-indian-seafarers-sonowal/3024692/>
  Leads with minister's reassurance, omits Navy escort operation
- thehindubusinessline.com (neutral report) <https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/logistics/indian-navy-monitors-safe-transit-of-merchant-vessels-through-bab-el-mandeb-strait/article71391708.ece>
  Leads with Navy's safe transit mission, omits minister's statement

This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources. Last updated 2026-08-26T07:31:58+00:00.

Tags: Gulf of Aden, Indian seafarers, piracy, Sarbananda Sonowal, Somalia, Yemen
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