One CAT 41 incident of armed robbery against ships in Asia was reported to ReCAAP ISC.
The incident occurred on board a bulk carrier while underway at Karimun Kecil, Indonesia in the Singapore Strait (SS).
Five perpetrators were sighted in the vicinity of the steering gear room. General alarm was sounded, all crew were safe and nothing was reported stolen.
With the incident, a total of 44 incidents were reported in the SS since January 2022.
Abduction of crew in Sulu-Celebes Seasand waters of Eastern Sabah
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), after careful consideration of inputs from stakeholders and counterparts with vital involvement in securing the Sulu-Celebes Seas maritime security measure, recommends the downgrading of the threat on the ‘Abduction of Crew for ransom in the Sulu-Celebes Seas’ from ‘POTENTIALLY HIGH’ to ‘MODERATE’.
The MODERATE threat level implies that ‘Incidents are possible to occur but are relatively less severe in nature’.
For ships transiting the area, the ship masters and crew are strongly encouraged to exercise extra vigilance and report all incidents immediately to the Operation Centres of the Philippines and Eastern Sabah Security Command (ESSCOM) of Malaysia.
Recommendation
Ship master and crew should report all incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships to the nearest coastal State and flag State, exercise vigilance and adopt appropriate preventive measures.
