One of the pirates sentenced in India sends a message to the Somali government

One of the pirates sentenced in India sends a message to the Somali government

In India, a court located in Mumbai has sentenced 44 Somali citizens to life imprisonment this week, after they confessed to charges including piracy and other offenses. This sentence relates to two different cases involving several hijackings of ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

These young men were arrested in 2024, and during their first court appearance, they stated that they faced several challenges in prison, including language barriers, food, culture, and lifestyle, hoping that the court and the government would show them mercy. One of the relatives of the prisoners, who spoke to BBC Somali, said that the boys wanted to be sentenced at least once, stating that Abdikaafi Saciid Saalax "never thought a life sentence would happen, because they were working at sea, they did not have a life in prison and faced many difficulties".

On July 30, 2026, Special Judge Sanjay Dige stated that Somali pirates were found guilty of various offenses, including the Anti-Piracy Act, the Illegal Activities (Prevention) Act, and attempted murder, under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Nine of the 44 Somali pirates were arrested after the Indian Coast Guard captured an Iranian fishing vessel that had been hijacked by pirates in March 2024. The ship also carried some Pakistanis. In the same month, the Coast Guard arrested 35 pirates accused of hijacking a commercial vessel.

These young men are the first from Somalia to receive such a sentence in India. Some families of the 44, who spoke to BBC Somali, expressed their shock at the unexpected sentence, although they were waiting for the court's decision, they did not anticipate such a sentence.

Abdikaafi Saciid Saalax Warfaa, whose older brother is named Maxamed Saciid Saalax Warfaa, stated that his brother and the other youths were wrongly sentenced, as they were captured in waters off their own country. "The youth were initially not involved in the hijackings of the ships, yet they were sentenced to a punishment that does not suit them, I am truly saddened".

Abdikaafi mentioned that they used to communicate with his brother through a website owned by the Indian government that allowed them to contact their brother, making appointments a day before they wanted to talk, where they would discuss "last time we talked about the conditions they live in and the challenges they face in prison, and he told me that they do not get good food, as they are not well, although some are suffering there", said Abdikaafi.

According to Kaafi, Maxamed is the family's breadwinner, aged 45, and was among the fishermen of Puntland before being captured as a prisoner.

The last time Kaafi and his brother communicated was at the beginning of 2023, when Maxamed left the city of Garoowe, heading to work at sea, and no one knew he was joining the pirates, but Kaafi stated that several times fishermen, including Maxamed, had spoken to the local media.

He noted that at that time they were complaining about ships and boats that were troubling the boats they were working with. When we asked why he thinks his brother was forced to join, he said: "There are many challenges in the waters of Somalia, which have hindered Somali fishing, they always encounter boats and ships, which have caused them not to work, sometimes they even cut their nets".

Kaafi also stated that this issue is one that falls under the Somali government, and they are waiting for them to address it.