Fewer attacks across the region but one attack off Oman by pirate-held fishing vessel. One vessel evades two pirate attacks in 5 days. More confusion over MV Dover ransom and release. Puntland forces nab pirates but Galmudug President fires cabinet amid insecurity. Militants 'might' be funding piracy. Sweden, India and Norway notify of arming merchant vessels whilst Denmark calls for more to be done. Maldives worries about scale of piracy threat. Germany sees no let up in piracy as 1-in-6 attacks prove successful - no hijacks since 30 April. Patrols reduce piracy, but the battle is far from over. Pirate DNA database to be built. The foreign security team pardoned, 'ransom' money kept.
The Southwest monsoon affecting the Somali Basin and Arabian Sea has failed to deter at least one Pirate Action Group. Two attacks off the Omani coast were conducted with a mothership in the vicinity; one reported time late (24 June). In the Red Sea, the now traditional hunting ground during the monsoon season saw one attack this week. Out of the three attacks, one vessel came under attack twice in 5 days. Superior firepower saw pirates arrested in Bosaso by Puntland security forces following a tip-off of their whereabouts. The President of Galmudug rings wholesale changes after lack of cooperation between ministers on security issues particularly in chasing pirates out of Hobyo. Despite reports of aircraft overflying MV Dover in a ransom drop, pirates claim to have not received the balance of ransom money. An Indian crewmember of recently MV Suez said funding and weapons might be provided to pirates by militant organisations and possibly countries involved. After the UK considered the arming of merchant vessels, Indian and Norwegian governments are to issue notification on the use of armed guards on their respective flagged vessels. The Danish Minister for Foreign Affairs says "together we must fight piracy," during talks with Saudi Arabia. Somali piracy shows no signs of ebbing and German shippers agree with no immediate let-up in sight. A senior UK Royal Navy officer states military patrols are reducing piracy, but the battle is far from over. A global forum is set to build a DNA database of Somali pirates by the end of next year with 490 pirate profiles already collected. A report states 1-in-6 attacks on shipping resulted in a hijack in the last 12 months, however, through a combination of weather, patrols and greater military action nearer to the Somali coast has seen no successful hijack since April 30. In fact, West Africa has suffered 3 hijacks in June.
Pirate Activity
No successful attacks once more in the past 7 days, three attacks have occurred; two in the Arabian Sea, despite the sea state, and one attack in the Red Sea near Assab in Eritrea. The attacks in the Arabian Sea are attributed to the pirate fishing vessel, FV Shiuh Fu No 1. Of the three attacks, two were carried out on one vessel; one in the Arabian Sea and the other in the Red Sea 5 days later. On both occasions evasive manoeuvres and warning shots fired by the security team dissuaded the pirate's attempts to board. The remaining attack saw the pirates able to hook a ladder onto the ships' rail, but due to the evasive manoeuvres and use of sea and swell, along with anti-piracy measures, evaded capture.
Release of vessels
No vessels were released by pirates despite the efforts of the owners of MV Dover. Reports of aircraft flying over the area twice in one afternoon to drop ransom money have been made. It was further stated that delivery of the ransom could not be made until later in the early evening due to the weather conditions. The Greek-owned bulk carrier's 23 crew can only be more frustrated since reports of a US$3 million ransom drop back in May this year. The pirates denied receiving the money and were also said to have had an internal dispute about sharing the money between the gangs involved.- Somalia Report. The pirates have said they will not release the ship and crew until they receive the balance of the ransom money amounting to US$7 million. The crew have suffered mistreatment by the pirates in order to effect faster and higher ransom payment. However, in a recent update, pirates holding the MV Dover and the Danish hostages told Somalia Report that the main pirate leaders and investors met over the last three days on the MV Dover to discuss the ship, hostages, ransom payments and the monsoon season. One of the pirate groups said that the investors and pirate commanders agreed after long discussions to accept $3 million as a ransom for the MV Dover and her crew. Two months ago the pirates holding the Dover asked the owners to pay $4.5 million as ransom and the owners committed to pay $2 million. To confuse matters more, rumors flew last week that $9 million ransom was dropped after aircraft were seen over the ship.
The matter was further complicated by journalists causing a pirate fight recently. 22 crew members and the Danes are being held on the MV Dover, despite other reports they had been moved to land. The vessel is anchored close to Rasu Bina village, near Bargal district in Bari region of Puntland. Sources confirmed that the investors have ordered the pirate commanders to limit the movement of the hostages on the ship and not to allow anybody else on board. On June 17 and 18, three Danish journalists, with one Somali translator, visited the hostages on the Dover and remained on the vessel for 24 hours. The journalists interviewed some of the hostages and pirate members, but they were not allowed to take any photos. One of the pirates told Somalia Report that the journalists' visit caused a huge dispute among the both pirate groups. The pirate group holding the Dover made a secret agreement with the journalists to meet the members of the Danish family. The pirate group in charge of the family were not informed of the visit in advance. Although the investors and commanders of both pirate groups finally solved their disputes, reliable sources said mistrust between the groups is growing. Reports state pirates holding the Danes are willing to accept $2 million as a ransom. The family had reportedly committed to pay $1.5 million - see Somalia Report.
Pirates in Court
A court in the Seychelles has sentenced five Somali pirates to 18 years in prison for attacking French ships in the Indian Ocean, the Seychelles Nation reported says Bloomberg. Supreme Court judge Duncan Gaswaga yesterday found the men guilty of attacking two French fishing vessels with rocket-propelled grenades (RPG) and small arms, the newspaper said. The attack took place on Nov. 17, it said. The pirates were captured by the Seychelles Coast Guard with help from maritime patrol reconnaissance aircraft. Seychelles has so far sentenced 25 Somalis to lengthy jail terms.
Pirates Ashore
Security forces in Bosaso, the commercial capital of Somalia's semi-autonomous region of Puntland, arrested four suspected pirates of Somali origin in a village near the port city 6 days ago. According to one security official, the suspects were nabbed on Saturday night in Suweyto village and detained at the central jail of Bosaso. An intensified security operation targeting selected places in Bosaso led to the arrests. One of those captured is allegedly a member of the pirate group that recently hijacked and demanded a $4 million dollar ransom from the German cargo ship MV Susan K. The security officials, after the tip-off which led to the manhunt, hailed the arrests a crucial milestone in combating rising insecurity in the port city, reports our partner site, Somalia Report.
Meanwhile, in the region of Galmudug in central Somalia, the President, Mohamed Ahmed Alin, implemented wholesale changes to the ailing administration by fire the whole cabinet due to the increase threats in the state, the lack of cooperation between ministers and the poor performance of the economy. President Alin took the measure after criticism from local communities became fed up with increasing criminality and an inability to completely chase pirates out of the Hobyo area. Although some success had been made in chasing pirate groups - unwelcome due to their debauched lifestyles - out of Hobyo, states Somalia Report, but with little money or security forces they were unable to bring the problem under control. The renowned pirate towns of Hobyo and Haradhere fall in the Galmudug territory. Alin promised to replace the officials in the coming days.
Booming Industry
Piracy has surged in recent years off Somalia, a lawless, war-torn country that sits alongside one of the world's most important shipping routes, writes
Times Live.
The IMB is concerned that some countries which have deployed naval assets off the Horn of Africa may cut their anti-piracy surveillance in the area. Capt Mukundan, the Director of IMB, said this year, despite the monsoon period (June to August), Somali pirates had escalated their attacks off the Gulf of Aden. "It is an important shipping lane for very large crude carriers which sail from the Arabian Gulf to Asian countries such as Japan, China and Singapore," he said. In previous years, there was a respite in attacks during the monsoon period due to strong winds and heavy seas. Mukundan said another worrying trend was the increase in violence against seafarers and hostages in the past six months. In one incident, Mukundan said two senior officers were put in a ship's meat storage refrigerator for 40 minutes and in an another case pirates carried out mock executions. "The violence and threat used is unprecedented and unacceptable," he said. Mukundan warned that the IMB expects the number of attacks to be higher than last year. "Pirates are getting more ransom, so they are escalating their attacks," he said. Mukundan urged countries to prosecute pirates captured at sea and not to release them. "We want captured pirates to be prosecuted and punished. Now more than 80 percent of the captured pirates are freed. It is sending the wrong signal to the pirates," he said.
Militant Funding
Talking to reporters in India after return from being held hostage on
MV Suez, Indian seafarer, Prashant Chauhan, a chef with only two months' experience on the vessel, stated that militant outfits might be funding piracy on the high seas. He further stated that a country's involvement in nurturing piracy cannot be ruled out. "
There are some militant organisations which are funding and providing weapons to them (Somali pirates). They might even be having some share in the hijacking of ships, as they must be charging them money and using them to supply arms. I am sure some country might also be involved in this," he added -
Daily India.com.
Call to Arms & Action Continues
Sweden - The call for armed guards continues to spread amongst international shipowners. Swedish Shipowners Association has made its position clear. In view of the fact that Denmark and Norway allow, or will in the near future, armed guards on their flagged vessels, Swedish Shipowners propose that armed guards be permitted on a case-by-case basis. This is to be put forward to the Swedish government as there is an unwillingness to provide military assistance to the extent necessary to protect shipping. In analysing the risk to shipping, the shipowners see this as the only way to protect the crew, says Swedish Radio (in Swedish). The findings of an internal inquiry of the Ministry of Industry will be put to the government to pursue a formal position in the matter as Somali piracy becomes a serious industrial problem.
In April the government launched an inquiry into the issue of whether Swedish vessels could make use of armed guards to protect themselves. But following its own internal investigation, the Swedish shipping company, Wallenius, has decided to act to hire security staff, armed with assault rifles, to help protect ships as they pass through the Horn of Africa - The Local. The Swedish Shipowners' Association expressed their support for Wallenius' position on Friday. "This method is unfortunately the best available and I fully understand that they have done so," said association president Håkan Friberg. He added that security matters are currently a decision for the shipping lines themselves.
India - In view of the piracy attempts on merchant vessels, the Indian Directorate-General of Shipping will soon issue a notification allowing armed security guards on board Indian merchant vessels, claims MaritimeSecurity.Asia. “The process is going on. The draft notification will be issued in 3-4 weeks,” Director-General of Shipping S.B. Agnihotri said. Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma said: “A policy for deploying armed security guards on Indian flagged ships is being examined by the government.” The announcement came during a meeting to mark the first year celebrations of the ‘Day of Seafarer’, which also saw announcements on welfare initiatives for Indian seafarers, including grievance redress day to be held in proposed regional offices.
The Company of Master Mariners of India (CMMI), a professional body of master mariners established in 1956, demanded the union defense ministry to expand the naval operations deep into the Arabian sea to avoid increasing number of pirate attack on the high seas.
Capt V N Aindley of CMMI said that the India government should address the issue of pirate attacks with an urgency. "India should initiate a coordination under the United Nations to develop and execute a military strategy on the piracy bases in and around Somalia. We should realise that this is not just a terrorist threat, but a challenge to the global trade and maritime industry," said the Captain Aindley in a statement representing the maritime community and sailors during the celebrations of International Day of the Seafarer.
UAE - The UAE has invited specialist naval forces from South Korea to provide counter-piracy training as part its of efforts to boost its defences against the growing high-seas threat. South Korea successfully freed a ship from Somali pirates in January - an event that left an impression on the UAE, a South Korean defence official told the South Korean Yonhap news agency - The National. About 10 underwater demolition troops will arrive in mid-July, supplementing 130 Korean "Ahk" special forces already stationed in Al Ain to provide anti-terrorism training, said Col Romano Lee, the defence attache at the South Korean embassy in Abu Dhabi.India and Mozambique have agreed to work together to improve maritime security in the Indian Ocean, following a high level meeting between Mozambican and Indian defence ministers. This follows a similar understanding between South Africa and Mozambique reached in June -
Defenceweb. The Indian Government announced the agreement following Mozambican Minister of Defence, Filipe Jacinto Nyussi’s, meeting in India with Defence Minister, Shri AK Antony. The issue of piracy was high on the agenda as it is a big concern for both countries, which have had numerous vessels hijacked by Somali pirates. Nyussi expressed gratitude towards the Indian Navy for rescuing pirated Mozambican ships. In March this year, the Indian Navy captured 61 pirates when they liberated the Mozambican fishing vessel
Vega 5. Thirteen crew were rescued from the vessel, which was being used as a mother ship after being hijacked in late December.
Denmark - Today a broad range of countries around the world as well as multilateral and regional organizations are engaged in handling the challenges, e.g. UN, NATO, EU and IMO. However — let's be honest — there is still room for improvement in our joint efforts. More needs to be done — and it needs to be done with comprehensive, concerted and international action.
Combating piracy is a complex task. We need to use all the tools in the toolbox. We need participation from many countries and parties around the world. I look forward to continuing the cooperation between Saudi Arabia and my country, Denmark, says Lene Espersen, the Danish Minister for Foreign Affair - Arab News.
Norway - Norwegian shipowners have welcomed clarification from it's government on the use of armed guards on their ships. The new rules will give owners of Norway-flagged vessels the procedures they will need to follow if they wish to employ armed security when transiting the Gulf of Aden or any other waters believed to be at risk from piracy. The rule clarification is to see shipowners required to get general framework permission from a Norwegian police authority and the maritime directorate. They are to document the actual use of a properly trained, and vetted armed services, with the authorities. The clarification will also detail the types of weapons that are to be considered suitable for use. Full details are yet to be published.
Germany - German shippers are increasingly turning to private security suppliers to combat the threat of piracy, a study showed on Wednesday. Somali pirates are making millions of dollars in ransoms from seizing ships in the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden, despite attempts by international navies to clamp down on such attacks. A senior British navy officer, Commodore Tim Fraser, said on Tuesday efforts to combat piracy off the Somali coast had reduced the number of successful attacks on merchant ships, though the battle was far from over. However, only 17 percent of the German shippers surveyed believed the EU mission in Somalia, Operation Atalanta, was contributing a significant amount to the fight against piracy, compared with 40 percent last year, according to the study by consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) . The vast majority, 80 percent, also felt that the payment of ransoms had worsened the problem and they all saw no sign of the problems easing - Reuters.
Maldives - With two separate attacks in June by Somalian pirates within a 30 nautical miles of Trivandrum, India, one maritime expert has warned that the Maldives’ growing use as crossroads for shipping routes make its own waters and businesses an increasingly attractive target in the future. Tim Hart, a security analyst specialising in piracy from around the Horn of Africa for Maritime and Underwater Security Consultants (MUSC), told Minivan News that the two attacks reported this month off India’s southern coast raised wider security issues for the Maldives that have previously affected other nearby archipelago nations like the Seychelles. While the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) this week said that the country’s territorial waters had not come under direct attack from piracy originating from Somalia, a spokesman said it shared the UN’s concerns over possible threats in the Indian Ocean. Hart said that as cargo fleets moved closer to the Maldives to try and ensure safer shipping routes, pirates were likely to follow in the search of viable targets. Aside from the potential impact to the country’s own shipping enterprises, the maritime expert added that tourism had also been affected by piracy in other Indian Ocean nations.
EJ Hogendoorn of International Crisis Group, in RealClearWorld, states that despite pouring an estimated $1.3 to $2 billion annually into an enormously complex naval counter-piracy operation, pirate attacks are at an all-time high. The Indian Ocean is plagued with piracy as far as the Seychelles Islands. That's because we apply superficial fixes without ever addressing the root causes: Somalia's chronic insecurity and state collapse. The real solution to the piracy lies not in the waters of the Indian Ocean, but onshore in Somalia. The answer is in re-imposing state authority in the now lawless parts of Somalia, which have become a fertile breeding ground for piracy and terrorism and a persistent threat to regional and international stability. This will require the political will of local authorities to clamp down on pirate gangs. They can be persuaded to do so with the right incentives and pressure from the international community. He finishes, "We can stop all this, but only by building up from the broken pieces."
Dutch Forces Disrupting Pirates
The Dutch Navy have just released a video featuring a real deal, high seas gunfight during an anti-piracy operation on April 2, 2011. 16 pirates were arrested and 2 were fatally wounded by the Dutch forces - via gCaptain.
Chinese Escort Fleet
The ninth group of Chinese escort ships will set sail from Zhanjiang in Guangdong Province on July 2 for the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia on an escort mission, China Defense Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun said Wednesday. Yang told reporters during a press briefing that the new task force will comprise the destroyer, Wu Han, and frigate, Yu Lin, as well as the supply ship, Qinghaihu. Yang said Chinese navy fleets had escorted 3,953 ships from countries all over the world by Wednesday. Among the escorted ships, "47 percent were foreign commercial ships," he added. Yang said Chinese navy fleets had rescued 40 ships chased by pirates to date.
DNA Profiling
An International forum tasked with countering piracy off the cosast of Somalia, plans to set up a DNA database of pirates by the end of next year, as part of its efforts to cut off illicit funds that finance pirates. So far, the global forum has collected DNA profiles from some 490 pirates - Bernama.
And finally...
The foreign security 'operatives ' sentenced to hefty jail terms for bringing $3.6 million into Somalia as ransom payment were quietly released, says Somalia Report, after receiving a presidential pardon. The six security men - one American, three Britons, and two Kenyans - were arrested on May 24 at Mogadishu's Aden Adde International Airport, and were being held in the airport along with two aircraft. "The men were freed in accordance with the president's directive, but we have the lump sum token as well as a payment of $100,000 for the two planes," said Banadir Chief Judge Dr Elmi Hashi Noor. The ransom money has been confiscated and the team members were allowed to secretly leave the country for the Kenyan capital Nairobi in their planes, officials said. "The men left immediately the same day they were pardoned, there is no negotiation over the cash placed in the Somali central bank," Police Spokesman Colonel Abdullahi Hassan Barise told Somalia Report. Fines reaching as high as $15,000 were also forgiven as part of the pardon.
Hijack:
3 Unsuccessful Attacks (1 time late): - June 24 at 1000 UTC, in position 21:03N – 060:12E: around 74nm east of Ghalat, Oman. Two skiffs with six armed pirates in each skiff chased and fired upon Marshall Island-flagged chemical tanker, Omega Duke, underway. The Master raised the alarm, increased speed and took evasive manoeuvres. The onboard security team fired warning shots resulting in the pirates abandoning the attempt.
- June 26 at 0949 UTC in position 21:45N - 060:31E, approximately 62nm Southeast of Ras al Hadd, Oman, Singapore-flagged bulk carrier, Sagar Ratan, was fired upon with RPG by two skiffs with 5 pirates in each. The pirates managed to hook a ladder onto the ships' rail, however, due to the evasive manoeuvres ordered by the Master, and the use of the sea state and swell, in conjunction with the razor wire and the arrival of a coalition warship response, the pirates aborted the attempt and moved away. A 40 metre-long grey-hulled mothership was reported in the vicinity, and has since been identified as the pirate-held FV Shiuh Fu No1.
- June 29 at 1530 UTC, in position 13:17N - 042:59E, in the Red Sea, approximately 21nm Northeast of Assab, Eritrea, 2 skiffs with 5 pirates. Bearing ladder and weapons, they chased the Marshall Island-flagged, Omega Duke, which once again, as it did in the attack 5 days previously in the Arabian Sea, raised the alarm, carried out evasive manoeuvres, and the security team fired warning shots which saw the pirates abort the attack.
Suspect Pirate Activity:- Sporadic acts of piracy may occur at any time in the Gulf of Aden area it is reaffirmed. The more moderate weather conditions expected in isolated areas of the Somali Basin over the next couple of days may reinvigorate pirate activities near the coast. The strong winds in the high seas are expected to continue until July 6, but more conducive conditions for piracy are soon expected in the waters around the Maldives, off the Kenyan coast, Tanzania and the central Indian Ocean along the equator.
- The Red Sea and Bab al Mandeb Strait has seen increased activity due to the monsoon season, however, one PAG is assessed as still operating in the area.
- The pirate-held fishing vessel, FV Shiuh Fu No.1, has been involved in mothership operations in the Arabian Sea, and is moving in a southerly direction at present, despite the sea state.
At least 19 ships (not including the Danish yacht in the list of vessels held, below) and an estimated 405 seafarers remain in the hands of pirates. 41 of these hostages, including the Danish hostages and crew from the MV Asphalt Venture and MV Orna, are being held on land or on board other vessels.
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 any reported positions of attacks and maintain maximum CPA with any ship acting suspiciously. Additionally, registration of vessel movement with MSC(HOA) prior to transiting the region is recommended. OCEANUSLive.org permits the reproduction of this image providing source and link are published (Map ToU)
Any suspicious activity should be reported to UKMTO in Dubai in the first instance (UKMTO 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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