Nine sailors were kidnapped during an attack on a trawler off the coast of Gabon on Saturday night, "the Ministry of Defense said in a video statement broadcast Monday by several Gabonese media.

"This attack, perpetrated by three armed individuals, led to the abduction of nine crew members, including five Chinese nationals and four Indonesians," said the Chief of Staff of the French Navy, Hubert Bekale Meyong.

"The trawler IB Fish 7, flying the Gabonese flag, was the victim of a pirate attack while it was engaged in fishing activity about seven nautical miles southwest of Ekwata, in Gabonese waters," he details, adding that "six other sailors, of Indonesian, Chinese and Burkinabe nationalities, remained on board the vessel."

Gabonese authorities located the ship before escorting it to the port of Libreville.

An investigation has been opened by the prosecutor's office in the capital, the Ministry of Defense also announced.

In February 2025, three sailors were kidnapped while they were also on board a trawler off Libreville.

After this previous attack, the French consulate in Libreville reminded its citizens that they should "avoid all pleasure boating in the Gulf of Guinea", which is particularly popular with fishing enthusiasts or tourists wishing to see whales off the coast of Gabon.

The Gulf of Guinea – which in its broadest definition extends from Liberia to Angola – is at the heart of trade flows to and from Europe, the United States, and Asia. A major hub for hydrocarbon and gas trade, it borders all the major producing countries of West Africa.

Long an epicenter of maritime insecurity, this maritime area has seen a decline in acts of piracy thanks to the joint efforts of coastal countries and European states.

"In the Gulf of Guinea, maritime insecurity linked to piracy and banditry remains persistent with a total of 26 events [in 2024, editor's note]. The overall trend has been downward for several years," analyzed the Maritime Information Cooperation & Awareness (MICA) Center, based in Brest, in its latest annual report published in 2025.