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On Nov 13, 2024, at 12.12 a.m., the 'Metro Ionian' was boarded by an unknown number of perpetrators about 3.6 nautical miles northwest of Pulau Cula in pos. 1° 2.6' N 103° 39.1 E . The intruders stole engine spares and escaped. No inuries were reported.

Taiwan has rejected allegations by China on Nov. 13, that it turned down requests by the “Yu Zhou Qi Hang” to seek shelter in Keelung Port before the typhoon hit. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) alleged the crew had asked to return to Keelung before Typhoon Kong-rey arrived, but Taiwan’s Maritime and Port Bureau replied they had made no such request, The crew wanted to leave Keelung before the typhoon and decided on their direction by themselves, the bureau said. Since the ship was carrying at least 290 tons of oil products, efforts were launched to prevent an oil spill from affecting the New Taipei coastline. However, since Nov. 2, several attempts at pumping out the oil were abandoned due to rough weather. The Ministry of Transportation wanted a new try to go ahead on Nov. 14, with the task to be completed within two weeks. The necessary equipment has been affixed to the “Yu Zhou Qi Hang,” but the approach of another typhoon, Usagi, might complicate the work. The Central Weather Administration was expected to issue sea warnings for the storm early on Nov 14, with land warnings likely to follow later in the day at the earliest.

Suspected attacks by Yemen’s Houthi terrorists targeted the 'Anadolu S', which was navigating the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden en route from Alexandria to Qasim, though no injuries or damage were reported, authorities confirmed on Nov 18, 2024. According to the Joint Maritime Information Center, a multinational task force led by the US, the bulk carrier was first contacted via VHF radio by an individual claiming to represent Yemeni authorities, who demanded the vessel change course. The vessel did not comply with the order and continued its transit. Later, the ship’s captain observed a missile landing near the vessel in the southern Red Sea, close to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on the night of Nov 17, 2024, approximately 30 miles west of the city of Mocha. A second incident followed on Nov 18, with another missile landing near the vessel about 70 miles southeast of Aden in the Gulf of Aden. The vessel and crew were safe and proceeding to the next port of call with an ETA as of Nov 23.

A 34-year-old man serving a prison sentence for the hijacking of the 'FWN Rapide', and subsequent hostage-taking of the crew, was arrested again on Nov 12, 2024. He will stand trial again, this time for the hijacking of the German m/v 'BBC Caribbean', now sailing as 'Kimberly', in the Gulf of Guinea in 2017. The convicted man's DNA profile was found to match a DNA trace from Germany. This was a trace on a cigarette butt found on board the freighter. The BBC Caribbean was attacked in international waters on Feb 5, 2017, by pirates armed with AK47 Kalashnikovs. During the hijacking, eight crew members were overpowered and held for weeks in Nigeria under threat of violence. Three crew members had managed to hide on board and were not discovered by the pirates. With a new crew, they sailed the 'BBC Caribbean' to the port of Las Palmas. There, among other things, abandoned cartridge cases of 9mm bullets, 7 cigarette butts, fingerprints and DNA traces were secured. The hostage crew members were taken under threat of automatic firearms in a wooden skiff to the mainland of Nigeria. According to statements from the victims, the pirates celebrated their success on the way with alcohol, pills and marijuana, repeatedly shooting into the air. The pirates were met with jubilation and more shots in the air at a makeshift shelter further in the Niger Delta. The investigation into the hijacking of the 'FWN Rapide', which was attacked on the high seas en route to Nigeria, led to the arrest of the leader of the pirates in South Africa in 2018. In the criminal proceedings that followed his extradition to the Netherlands, the man was sentenced to a prison term of eight years and six months by the Rotterdam District Court in 2022. There was no appeal. In consultation with the German authorities, the Netherlands has made an additional request to South Africa to also prosecute the man for the hostage-taking of the crew of the' BBC Caribbean' and the hijacking of the ship. Based on the German, translated investigation file, the Dutch Public Prosecution Service (OM) has compiled a case file for the Rotterdam District Court. The suspect arrested this week by detectives from the National Expertise and Operations Unit (LX) was remanded in custody for two weeks by the examining magistrate in the new criminal case on Nov 14.

This week, the crew of the hijacked 'Galaxy Leader' mark one full year in Houthi captivity near the port of Hodeidah. The ship has been held in Houthi custody since the group's commando forces boarded and seized it on Nov 19, 2023. As motivation for the hijacking, the Houthis cited the Israeli-linked ownership interests of the ship's commercial operator, UK-based Ray Car Carriers. The militants diverted the vessel to Hodeidah and opened it to the public, making it a popular tourist attraction and dance-hall destination. The crew have been living aboard the 'Galaxy Leader' throughout their ordeal. 17 of them are from the Philippines, and Manila has repeatedly called for their release. The remainder of the crew includes three Ukrainians, two Bulgarians, two Mexicans and one Romanian. In August, the Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs reported that several of the Filipino crew members were experiencing significant health issues, including symptoms of malaria. "It seems incredible that a year has passed, and the crew of the Galaxy Leader are still being held hostage. Innocent seafarers and families who have had their lives irrevocably changed by geopolitical forces wholly out of their control. "The seafarers, some of whom have been at sea for nearly two years, have been held against their will only limited contact with their families, friends, and loved ones. This is unconscionable and must not be allowed to endure. We are thinking of the seafarers and all of those affected at this time, and we continue to call for humanity to prevail and their immediate release," said the International Chamber of Shipping Secretary General Guy Platten.