Tag: maritime piracy

32 people onboard The Iranian Navy foils attempts by pirates to hijack a Hong Kong ship in the Gulf of Aden.The merchant vessel, with 32 people on board, which was sailing en route from Italy to Australia, was attacked by Somali pirates during the course of Friday night, but they were swiftly encountered by ships of the 12th Fleet of the Navy. The Iranian Navy has so far dispatched a number of military warships to the Gulf of Aden to guard Iranian and foreign vessels sailing in international waters. Pirates operating off the coast of Somalia have expanded the reach of their hijacking attacks on merchant vessels and oil tankers in the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden over the past 2 years, making tens of millions of dollars in ransom, despite the fact that dozens of foreign naval vessels are patrolling the area.Source: Tehran Times

Extended by 6 days Malaysian authorities have extended by six days a detention order against seven Somali pirates captured by Malaysian forces last month in a raid to free a hijacked oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden.A police spokesman told AFP that investigators need more time to complete their probe into the case, a historic bid by an Asian country to prosecute bandits operating off the coast of lawless Somalia."The extended detention is to enable police to complete their investigations," a spokesman from police headquarters in the capital Kuala Lumpur told AFP.The seven have been held on remand in Malaysia since January 31 when they arrived on board the tanker MT Bunga Laurel, which was seized by pirates along with its crew of 23 on January 20.The tanker was headed to Singapore with a cargo of lubricating oil worth more than $10 million when high-seas bandits armed with AK-47 assault rifles boarded and took control of the ship.Malaysian naval commandos from a vessel protecting shipping in the Gulf of Aden, along with a navy attack helicopter, responded to a distress call and captured the pirates after a brief firefight.A day later, South Korean forces captured another five pirates in ...

International Conference about piracy threat The Foreign Ministry and DP World are organising an international conference to explore ways to safeguard shipping against the growing threat of Somali piracy.The event, set for April 17 to 19, will bring together foreign dignitaries and industry experts to discuss a "regional response towards a joint approach against maritime piracy", said the state news agency WAM.Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, extended the first public invitations this week to his Syrian and Lebanese counterparts."Piracy is a growing problem that is having a direct impact on shipping lines and an indirect impact on the supply chain as a whole," said DP World, the third largest ports operator in the world, based in Dubai.The conference comes as the economic and humanitarian cost of piracy has reached record highs. This year, pirates have seized seven vessels and 148 crew members, for a total of 33 vessels and 758 crew members, according to the International Maritime Bureau.The number of captive ships and seafarers is at its highest yet, said Nato representative Cdr Stein Olav Hagalid, speaking on the sidelines of a piracy conference earlier this week. Average ransoms now top US$5 million (Dh18.3m) and average ...

Somali man in isolation for more than one year Somali man who pleaded guilty to hostage-taking last year in the hijacking of a U.S.-flagged ship has been held in isolation for more year after he allegedly ordered from jail that the captain of another ship be killed, according to court documents.Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse, 21 years old, pleaded guilty last May to hostage-taking and conspiracy in the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama in the Indian Ocean in April 2009.In court papers filed Wednesday, his lawyers said the U.S. Attorney General determined that Mr. Muse should be held under so-called "special administrative measures" in January 2010 after a probe into whether he had instructed pirate crew members to kill another boat captain.The government determined two phone calls by Mr. Muse while in custody corroborated the threat, his lawyers said in court papers."The two prison calls identified by the government do not provide proof of any such threat," his lawyers said. "We believe the government has misinterpreted these calls. We do acknowledge, however, that Abduwali discussed piracy matters over the phone."Mr. Muse is no longer subject to the restrictive measures, but remains in solitary confinement at a federal jail in lower Manhattan, his ...

IMO issued a new document The IMO has issued document MSC.4/Circ.165 dated 14 January 2011, which lists acts of piracy and armed robbery against ships reported during December 2010.Please click here to view the document.Source : IMO

A continuous effort to tackle piracy After one of its fast attack craft sunk a pirate mother ship near Lakshadweep, Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma today said his force will continue to carry out "heavy patrolling" against pirates there."We have already put in very heavy patrolling as far as our waters are concerned and that is the reason why this pirate ship could be tackled...This effort would continue," he told reporters here.Last week, a Naval Fast Attack Craft (FAC) sunk a pirate mothership named 'Prantalay' 75 miles off Lakshadweep saving the 20-member crew of the hijacked vessel on-board and arrested 15 pirates from it.To thwart any piracy attempts around Lakshadweep, the Coast Guard along with the Navy has launched the Operation Island Watch along the Lakshadweep Islands.Noting that the joint Coast Guard and Navy patrols were keeping a strict vigil there, he said, "That is why it just did not carry out an attack and escape and that is why in good time, we could detect it and take action."In the recent past, activities of pirates around Lakshadweep have increased and they were also successful in hijacking a Bangladeshi-flagged merchant vessel about 90 nautical miles off Kochi and 80 nautical ...

The monsoon has not affected the possibility of small boat operations in the GoA Gulf of Aden/Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC) The monsoon has not affected the possibility of small boat operations in the GoA although pirate activity has been low this last week. A further improvement in weather during the next few days is forecast, and skiffs blending in with the local traffic to conduct piracy can be expected at any time with little or no warning. Arabian Sea/Greater Somali BasinOver the past week the northeast monsoon hampered pirate activity in both the Arabian Sea and the Greater Somali Basin. However, the improved forecast for the next days will allow the Somali pirates to exploit the opportunity both in the Somali Basin and especially in the Arabian Sea. The past week (21-27 January) saw one pirating (BELUGA NOMINATION) and one attempt (ZHEN HUA 26). Pirates continue to launch the majority of attacks from pirate-controlled local dhows, primarily Iranian-flagged, and pirated ships have also been used in the same area.The number of pirated fishing vessels and dhows conducting piracy operations is assessed to be at least four dhow type mother ship pirate attack groups (or PAGs) underway in the western ...

The vessel escaped unhurt An Iranian vessel carrying two million barrels of oil has successfully managed to escape unhurt after being attacked by Somali pirates in the waters of the Gulf of Aden.The Iranian oil tanker dubbed "Haraaz" was sailing in the water of the Gulf of Aden on Monday at 22:45 p.m. local time (1905 GMT) when it was waylaid by pirates in their first night time attack against an Iranian vessel cruising in the Gulf of Aden, Mehr news agency reported on Thursday.The vessel got away unscathed after a series of chase and escape attempts, which lasted for nearly two hours, and all the crew on board of the Iranian ship are reported to be in complete health, the report said.It was the 31st reported attack on an Iranian vessel in the Gulf of Aden and the first such attempt in 2011.According to Jamal Mayahi, the technical Director of National Iranian Tanker Company, the ship is now on its way to Egypt, where it is expected to make a port call and to unload its cargo.In July, Somali pirates failed in their previous attempt to hijack an Iranian vessel carrying crude oil to Spain en route the Bab ...

Development in the tactics employed by Somali pirates A recent incident could signal a worrying development in the tactics employed by Somali pirates, according to the ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB).On 12 January 2011, suspected Somali pirates boarded a generalcargo vessel some 270 NM north east of Socotra Island. The attack was launched from a previously-captured fishing vessel currently being used as a mother ship. Six crew members- two Danes and four Filipinos- were removed from their ship and transferred to the hijacked fishing vessel.Hijacked vessels have previously been used by the pirates, enabling a greater range and capability- meaning they can operate further into the Indian Ocean and with no interference by naval forces.IMB Director Pottengal Mukundan commented: "Whilst the use of hijacked vessels as mother ships is not a new phenomenon, the abduction of crew members could signal a significant new development."At least five large hijacked cargo ships and three fishing vessels have acted as mother ships in the last couple of months, posing a new and significant threat to the safety of shipping. The five cargo vessels range in size from MT 5,000 to 72,000 in deadweight - or cargo carrying capacity - and include four tankers ...

NATO Shipping Center weekly assessment - 14 January 2011 Gulf of Aden/Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC). The monsoon is not effecting small boat operation in the GoA and skiffs blending in the local traffic to conduct piracy can be expected at any time without or little warning. The past week has seen several attack calls in the western part of the GoA and even southern Red Sea. Evaluation of these incidents has revealed that the approaches and attacks are related to fishing and angry fishermen and not to piracy. The main piracy threat remains in the central and eastern part of the GoA/IRTC.Arabian Sea/Greater Somali Basin. The northeast monsoon is not affecting the Arabian Sea or Greater Somali Basin and pirates in the northern part of the Somali Basin and the Arabian Sea remain very active being responsible for at least eight attacks or approaches.The number of pirated fishing vessels and dhows conducting piracy operations is assessed to be at least three dhow type mother ship pirate attack groups (or PAGs) underway in the western Arabian Sea and two fishing vessel mother ship PAG, FV Shiuh Fu 1 and FV Tai Yuan 227, in the western Arabian Sea possibly northern ...