ReCAAP issues July report on piracy and maritime crime in SE Asia

In July 2020, six incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships were reported in Asia. Of the six incidents, one was a piracy incident and five were armed robbery against ships.

There was no report of abduction of crew in the Sulu-Celebes Seas and waters off Eastern Sabah, Malaysia in July 2020. However, the abduction of crew for ransom remains a serious concern as demonstrated by the Warning issued by the ReCAAP ISC on 2 July that five Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) members were planning to conduct abduction of crew from ships passing by Tawi-Tawi and Sabah waters.

The ReCAAP ISC is also concerned about the continued occurrence of incidents on board ships while underway in the Singapore Strait. Three incidents were reported in July 2020. With these, a total of 19 incidents were reported in the Singapore Strait during January-July 2020 comprising 15 incidents occurred in the eastbound lane of the Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS), two incidents in the precautionary area, one incident in the westbound lane of the TSS and one incident just outside (south) of the TSS.

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Source: recaap.org

To download the report, please click here.

Op-Ed: A Simple Deal on Embarked Guards Could End West African Piracy

By Jakob Voight

On July 17, 2020, the tanker Curacao Trader was boarded by pirates at a position about 210 nautical miles from Nigerian shores. 13 Russian and Ukrainian seafarers were abducted. Two weeks before, the freighter Kota Budi was boarded about 200 nm from Nigerian shore. What is particularly noticeable about these attacks is the location: when looking at the statistics for 2019, it appears that the average distance of confirmed pirate attacks was 62 nm from shore, with only seven attacks at positions more than 100 nm from shore. In 2020, the average distance of confirmed pirate attacks was 75 nm, and there have already been several pirate attacks at positions more than 100 nm from shore.

Despite the improvement of the regional cooperation demonstrated in the response to the Hai Lu Feng 11 attack in May, despite the arrival of new maritime platforms, despite the use of surveillance systems like the Deep Blue project in Nigeria, it is obvious that pirates are a permanent threat off West Africa. The increase of pirates’ operational range is not a surprise for informed observers. This trend was seen in the Indian Ocean between 2004 and 2010, when Somali pirates reached almost to the west coast of India. This evolution is not due to chance – it’s simply the search for “soft locations,” areas where no means of coercion prevent the act of piracy or react quickly enough to intervene in a boarding or kidnapping. West African pirates thus demonstrate their capacity for adaptation.

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Source: maritime-executive.com

PRO-9 activates task force to combat organized crime groups

By Leah Agonoy

PAGADIAN CITY, Zamboanga del Sur – The Police Regional Office (PRO-9) has activated “Task Force Pink Panther” to boost security in “risk areas” and address threat groups in the region. Brig. Gen. Jesus Cambay Jr., PRO-9 director, who led the activation of the task force Monday, said the unit will consist of five task groups to secure the region’s coastlines.

In an interview Tuesday, Cambay said the task force will consist of policemen, soldiers, and personnel from other line agencies, especially those engaged in law enforcement, like the coast guard, and maritime police.

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Source: pna.gov.ph

Nigerian navy secures first conviction under new piracy law

By Fidelia Agwuncha

The Federal High Court (FHC) Port Harcourt has convicted 3 of nine persons accused of hijacking an Equatorial Guinea flagged vessel on 21 March 2020.

Justice Ishaq Sani summarily convicted the accused on Counts 1 and 2 under the new Anti-Piracy Act 2019 and ordered them to pay a fine of N10 Million Naira each on each of the Counts.

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Source: tv360nigeria.com

Armed security guards required in Bénin

As a result of the recent increase of pirate attacks in the Gulf of Guinea, governmental authorities of Bénin have taken pre-emptive measures to prevent such attacks in their territorial waters through a new decree, Concerning Means of Protection of Ships in the Territorial Waters of BÃ©nin.

Any ship bound for a port in Bénin with an armed protection team on board, is required to send through its ship agent, a request for permission to enter Benin’s territorial waters with its own armed onboard protection team.

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Source: hellenicshippingnews.com

BW Reveals Fate of Kidnapped Crew

by Andreas Exarheas

BW Offshore has revealed that all of its employees who were kidnapped from its Sendje Berge FPSO back in July have been safely released.

“The company would like to extend its gratitude to those involved in the safe release of everyone who was abducted from the FPSO Sendje Berge,” the company said in a statement posted on its website late last week.

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Source: rigzone.com

Crew Kidnapped from Liberian Flagged Tanker Offshore Lagos

Armed pirates have reportedly kidnapped 13 seafarers from a Liberian-flagged product tanker in the Gulf of Guinea off West Africa, continuing a rise in attacks on vessels in the world’s most dangerous piracy hot spot.

The Curcacao Trader was approached by eight armed individuals aboard a single speedboat and boarded 232 nautical miles southwest of Lagos, Friday, July 17, 2020. Among those abducted are seven Russian nationals, according to the Russian embassy in Nigeria. The other five crew members taken from the ship are believed to be Ukranian.

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Source: liberianobserver.com

Hackers may already be hitting ports, say experts

by Martyn Wingrove

Ports are on the front line of the maritime industry’s cyber war and are vulnerable to hackers and cyber attacks, panellists told attendees during Riviera’s ‘Where port security meets cyber security’ webinar, held in association with the Maritime Transportation System – Information Sharing and Analysis Center (ISAC)

The key message from cyber security experts was that operators and authorities need to know their vulnerabilities and be prepared for a constant barrage of cyber threats.

Panellists offered insights into an array of cyber risks facing the maritime industry as well as guidance on how to cost-effectively mitigate those threats.

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Source: rivieramm.com

Troops deactivate 25 illegal refineries, impound 342,000 ltrs of AGO in South-South

By Sumaila Ogbaje

Abuja, Aug. 6, 2020 The Defence Headquarters says troops of Operation Delta Safe, discovered and deactivated 25 illegal refineries and impounded 342,000 litres of illegally refined AGO in the South-South in the last two weeks.

The Coordinator, Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. John Enenche, disclosed this while giving updates on military operations across on Thursday in Abuja.

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Source: naija247news.com

Esscom needs own aircraft, says air operations chief

By KRISTY INUS

KOTA KINABALU: The Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) needs its own aircraft to strengthen air patrols, especially within the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (ESSzone).

Esscom Air Operations chief of staff Brig Gen Ayub Khan Mohd Khan said having air assets was vital to ensure monitoring by air could be carried out more effectively to curb cross-border crimes in hot spots and routes used as staging points by cross-border criminals.

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Source: thestar.com.my