Greek-owned oil tanker is believed to have come under attack since Wendesday
A global maritime watchdog on Thursday warned ships to be vigilant when travelling past Benin following a spate of piracy attacks off the west African country.
Noel Choong, head of the Kuala Lumpur-based piracy reporting centre of the International Maritime Bureau (IMB), said a Greek-owned oil tanker lost communication Wednesday off Benin and was believed to have come under attack.
“The latest would be the eighth attack in recent weeks,” Choong told AFP.
“It’s considered serious.”
Choong said his centre had contacted authorities in Benin and neighbouring Nigeria to beef up security and was warning ships travelling in those waters.
On June 8, heavily armed pirates hijacked another Greek tanker as it lay at anchor off Cotonou in Benin.
They forced it to sail to an unknown location, ransacked property and some of its cargo, and then abandoned the ship.
“Attacks are increasing off Cotonou, Benin. Pirates are violent and some crew members were injured during the attacks recently,” the IMB’s reporting centre said.
Last month, a Philippine seaman was found dead on board his chemical tanker, four days after the ship was attacked by pirates off Benin.
Hundreds of pirate attacks, especially off Somalia in east Africa, have occurred in recent years, despite nations stepping up ocean patrols, with pirates raking in large ransoms. A number have also been captured.
Source: AFP
