Turkish Abductions

The Turkish Abductions (Icelandic: Tyrkjaránið) were a series of slave raids by Ottoman pirates that took place in Iceland between June 20 – July 19, 1627. Pirates from Morocco and Algeria, under the command of Dutch pirate Murat Reis, raided the village of Grindavík on the southwestern coast, Berufjörður and Breiðdalur in the Eastern Region (the East Fjords), and Vestmannaeyjar (islands off the south coast); they captured an estimated 400–800 prisoners to sell into slavery.

In 1627 Barbary corsairs from Algiers and Salé descended on Iceland in two separate raids, taking around 400–900 prisoners (Iceland's population at the time has been estimated to have been about 60,000). This event is popularly known in Iceland as Tyrkjaránið – the 'Turkish Raid', as it was launched from areas under Ottoman sovereignty, although no North African Turks are known to have been involved. Most pirates were Arabs and Berbers, a large part - the Dutch and other Europeans, who converted to Islam. Four ships attacked the eastern and southern coast as well as the Vestmannaeyjar ("Westman Islands"). Ten years later 27 captives made it back to Iceland; a few had come home earlier.

The leader of one of the raids was Jan Janszoon, also known as Murat Reis the younger, a Dutch pirate who operated from Salé. In 1627 he rented a Danish slave (most likely a crew member captured on a Danish ship taken as a pirate prize) to pilot him and his men to Iceland, where they raided the fishing village of Grindavík. Their takings were meagre, some salted fish and a few hides, but most importantly they captured twelve Icelanders and three Danes, whom they could sell as slaves. As they were leaving Grindavík, they managed to trick and capture a Danish merchant ship by flying a false flag.

...
Wikipedia