SAFETY4SEA remembers the hijacking of the cruise ship ‘Achille Lauro’ in 1985 by four heavily armed Palestinian militants who posed as passengers, resulting to the brutal murder of one passenger. The attack lasted only two days but spurred a global concern over the shaping dimensions of maritime terrorism.
IMO’s rules and regulations for suppressing unlawful acts against the safety of navigation can be seen in the wider context of the global fight against terrorism. The United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate carries out assessment visits to countries to assess their compliance with various international security instruments and UN Security Council resolutions.
As geopolitical tensions mount and threats to shipping rise, Alistair Johnston, Maria Borg Barthet and Richard Pryor of international law firm Campbell Johnston Clark suggest existing marine insurance arrangements may need to be re-evaluated.
The port authorities, based on specific intel inputs by the security services, have cautioned all Merchant Shipping operating in and around the Gulf of Kutch and in particular Kandla and Mundra ports on the possibility of underwater attacks by potential terror organisations.
A group of heavily armed men, suspected to be linked to terrorist group Abu Sayyaf, have kidnapped a total of 10 crew men from two fishing vessels in Malaysian waters, in the early morning hours of Tuesday. The two boats were off Lahad Datu’s Tambisan area and heading towards Semporna.
February 27th marks 15 years after the bombing of the ‘SuperFerry 14’, the deadliest terrorist attack in Philippines, which killed a total of 116 people. The blast occurred on 27 February 2004 in Manila Bay, claiming the title of the world’s deadliest terrorist attack at sea until today.
IMO and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), IMO security and counter-terrorism treaties, such as SOLAS Chapter XI-2 and the suppression of unlawful acts (SUA) instruments, conducted a cross-regional workshop in Bali, Indonesia to support the implementation of the treaties in South and South-East Asia for terrorist attacks. The workshop took place on 5 to 8 of February.
Terrorists are making about US$ 7 million a year by smuggling charcoal illegally off Somalia, a conference on maritime security, attended by the multinational maritime security coalition Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), has heard.
The US Coast Guard will impose conditions of entry on vessels arriving from certain ports in Iraq. Conditions of entry aim to protect the US from vessels arriving from countries that have been found to have deficient anti-terrorism port measures in place. The conditions of entry will apply from October 26, 2018.
The Yemeni Navy managed to prevent an attempt by Houthi rebels against ships in the Red Sea. According to initial reports, Yemeni forces seized a a booby-trapped, explosives-loaded boat sent by the Houthis to attack international ships in the area.
