Merchant vessel attacked by pirates in the Gulf of Aden outside the IRTC
On 19 February, a merchant vessel, a bulk carrier, came under attack by pirates in 3 wooden skiffs. The attack occurred in position 1219N 04406E, in the Gulf of Aden, approximately 60nm southeast of Aden, Yemen. The vessel managed to evade the hijack attempt by employing evasive manoeuvres. No reports of damage or harm to the crew have been received.
The Gulf of Aden Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC) is patrolled by international navies, including EUNAVFOR, NATO and CMF units. Other international navies from Russia, China and India provide an escort to merchant vessel convoys in accordance with planned transits published via MSC)HOA). The Gulf of Aden has seen a 50 percent fall in attacks during 2010, in comparison to the 117 attacks which occurred in 2009. However, this attack occurred outside of the IRTC coordinates and was also outside of the Bab El Mandeb Straits.
This is the second attempted hijack carried out today. An earlier attack occurred far to the south of the Indian Ocean 90nm off the northeast coast of Madagascar where a skiff attempted the capture of a merchant vessel and with a mothership seen in the vicinity.
Vessels are reminded that the coalition forces' warships may not be in the vicinity of a pirate attack, subsequently, it is emphasised that seafarers can greatly reduce their chances of being pirated if they follow precautions as recommended in the Best Management Practices, increasing speed and carrying out evasive manoeuvres is a proven deterrent to piracy attacks.
Vessels are advised to exercise extreme caution when navigating in the vicinity of the reported position of the attack and maintain maximum CPA with any ship acting suspiciously. Additionally, registration of vessel movement with MSC(HOA) prior to transiting the region is recommended.
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Any suspicious activity should be reported to UKMTO in Dubai in the first instance (UKMTO@eim.ae or Telephone+971 50 552 3215) and on entering the UKMTO Voluntary Reporting Area (VRA) bound by Suez,78E and 10S.
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