Pirates increase use of guns as attacks climb

The Gulf of Aden, off Somalia, connects to the Red Sea, which in turn is linked to the Mediterranean by the Suez Canal.

The route is thousands of miles and many days shorter than travelling around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope.

Some 20 tankers sail through the sea lane daily. But some liners have in the past detoured around southern Africa to avoid pirates.

“The naval vessels operating off the Coast of Somalia continue to play a critical role in containing the piracy threat,” said IMB director Pottengal Mukundan. “Enhanced security measures by vessels have also made it difficult for pirates to succeed in their attacks.”

Captain Mukundan added: “It is vital that regions in Somalia such as Puntland continue to take firm action in investigating and prosecuting the pirates. This will be a far better deterrent against Somali pirates than prosecution and punishment in a foreign country.”

Nigeria remains another area of high concern.

While only 20 attacks were officially reported to IMB in 2009, other sources indicate that at least 50 per cent of attacks on vessels, mostly related to the oil industry, have gone unreported.

The IMB report noted that of the 20 incidents reported, eight were in the waters around Lagos.

Chittagong port in Bangladesh has also seen an increase in the number of incidents as compared to 2008.

There have been 12 reported attacks so far in 2009 — 10 successfully carried out — compared to nine for the same period in 2008, when all the vessels were successfully boarded and looted.

The South China Sea has once again proven to be an area of concern and enhanced risk, with 10 incidents reported so far in 2009.

This is the highest recorded number of incidents in the corresponding period over the last five years.

All of the attacks were successful and in some cases the bridge of the vessel was left unmanned for some time.

IMB urges all ship masters, owners and managers, and others involved in the shipping industry, to report piracy or armed robbery incidents to its PRC – located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.