The Turkish ship owner Kadıoğlu Maritime has managed to establish communication with a group of pirates who kidnapped 10 Turkish seafarers from the general cargo ship ‘Paksoy 1’ off Nigeria, in the night hours of Saturday, 13 July, while sailing from Cameroon to the Ivory Coast.
Following the Turkish Foreign Ministry’s statement, ten Turkish seafarers onboard the Paksoy 1 freighter were kidnapped by pirates in the Gulf of Guinea, on Saturday night, July 13. The ship is now on anchorage at the port Tema, Ghana. The Turkish Foreign Ministry is closely collaborating with authorities in Nigeria and Ghana to safely release the crew.
ICC published a report on piracy and armed robbery in the timeframe from January 1 to June 30, 2019. Based on the report, the seas circling West Africa are the most dangerous for piracy, as of the 75 seafarers taken hostage onboard or kidnapped for ransom worldwide so far this year, 62 were captured in the Gulf of Guinea – off the coasts of Nigeria, Guinea, Togo, Benin and Cameroon.
BIMCO’s Head of Maritime Security, Jakob P. Larsen, highlighted that there’s no reason to ‘turn a blind eye to piracy’ in the Gulf of Guinea. He supports the establishment of a contact group to fight piracy in the Gulf and protect the shipping industry.
Members of the shipping community, Flag States and Agencies from Gulf of Guinea gathered at the IMO Headquarters for a day-long symposium on Maritime Security in the Gulf of Guinea. The shipping industry, as well as seafarer groups, organized the event aiming to give emphasis to the continuing danger to seafarers that are sailing in the Gulf of Guinea.
Mr Kurt Cornelis, Head of Cooperation, EU Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, announced in a press conference that the EU decided to support the implementation of strategies in maritime, fisheries and illegal drug trafficking that are taking place in the Gulf of Guinea.
Blue Marlin, Boskali’s heavy transport vessel was hijacked on Sunday, May 5, about 80 nautical miles offshore Equatorial Guinea. In a statement, the company announced that the vessel’s crew was freed due to professional response of the crew and a coordinated support from the navy of Equatorial Guinea and Spain, the violent hijacking has been ended and the crew was safely freed.
As a tanker was anchored at Bonny Outer Anchorage, Nigeria, on April 19, pirates boarded the ship. After that, they kidnapped six of the crew members and escaped. According to IMB, the rest of the crew are reported to be safe, while the Nigerian navy was notified and investigations are ongoing.
The video, issued by One Earth Future’s Stable Seas, looks at the criminal activities that have historically taken place in the Gulf of Guinea and the recent strides being made in combating those illegalities. At the centre of efforts, the ‘Yaounde Code of Conduct’ brings together signatory nations from West and Central Africa.
Four persons in a speed boat armed with automatic weapons approached and boarded an anchored product tanker, on April 15, at Bonny River Inner Anchorage, Nigeria. Fires were shot, with the pirates eventually retreating and escaping. One guard was injured during the shooting and was given first aid by the crew. The remaining crew are reported to be safe.
