25 February 2011
Gulf of Aden/Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC)
No attacks were reported over the past week in the GoA. However, skiffs blending in withthe local traffic to conduct piracy can be expected at any time with little or no warning. The main piracy threat remains in the central and eastern part of the GoA/IRTC. Overall, reports of attacks remain below 2010 and 2009 levels.
Arabian Sea/Greater Somali Basin
Except for the far southeast of the Indian Ocean, weather is not affecting the greater Somali Basin and Arabian Sea. During the past week (19 -25 February) piracy activities were concentrated in the southern Arabian Sea between 10 to 15 Degrees North and 58 to 64 Degrees East. One yacht has been pirated and several merchants been attacked or approached in that area. Numerous calls of suspicious sightings close to the Omani coast indicate another focused area for pirates operating area. Pirates are using dhow mother ships to launch their attack skiffs against any targets of opportunity. A significant number of pirated regional dhows, particularly Iranian flagged Jelbut-type and Yemeni flagged Yemeni-type vessels are currently in pirate possession and regularly being taken out on mother ship operations.
We currently assess that at least five such vessels are on active operations in the Arabian Sea region, and more attacks are likely in the coming days.
Source: NATO Shipping Center