Modern-Day Piracy
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Mohamed Abdi Hassan
Mohamed Abdi Hassan, known as Afweyne, was described by the United Nations as one of the most notorious leaders of Somali piracy networks during the height of Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean hijackings around 2008-2012, including the 2009 hijacking of the Belgian vessel Pompei. He publicly announced his retirement from piracy in 2013 to…
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Abduwali Muse
Abduwali Muse was the sole surviving pirate involved in the April 2009 hijacking of the U.S.-flagged container ship Maersk Alabama, during which Captain Richard Phillips was held hostage in a lifeboat for several days. U.S. Navy SEAL snipers killed his three accomplices, and Muse was taken into custody. He was tried in U.S. federal court…
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Abshir Abdillahi (Boyah)
Abshir Abdillahi, known as Boyah, was a Somali pirate leader based in the Puntland region, described by journalists as one of the earliest and most prominent figures in the resurgence of Somali piracy, having reportedly begun as a lobster diver before turning to hijacking foreign fishing and merchant vessels starting in the 1990s. He gave…
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Sugule Ali
Sugule Ali acted as the spokesperson for the Somali pirate group that hijacked the Ukrainian-flagged cargo ship MV Faina, loaded with tanks and military equipment, off the Somali coast in September 2008. He gave extensive telephone interviews to international media during the four-month standoff, defending the hijacking as a response to illegal foreign fishing and…