BREAKING: Kidnappers Abandon Abducted Navy Commandant Inside Ondo Forest

Lt Commander Ajare Uchegbulah Amadi, a commandant of the Nigerian Navy abducted last week around the Oba Akoko area of Ondo State, has been rescued.

Amadi was set free on Wednesday afternoon after his abductors abandoned him in a forest.

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Source: saharareporters.com

Russian sailors captured off Benin’s coast released

The kidnapped crewmembers of Tommi Ritscher container ship included three Russians, according to earlier data

TASS, May 25. Eight sailors, including Russians citizens, who were captured off the Beninese coast have been released in neighboring Nigeria, head of the operation to save sailors, admiral Oladele Daji said Monday.

“We are hoping to ask them questions, but it is too early now, at least one of them is too weak,” Agence France-Presse quoted him as saying.

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Source: tass.com

9 Georgian sailors kidnapped in Nigeria released

Nine Georgian sailors who have been kidnapped by pirates from a ship flying the Panamese flag in Nigeria have been released and will return to their homeland in several days.

Tamar Ioseliani, head of the Maritime Transport Agency of Georgia, said that a special flight will be carried out to bring the sailors back home.

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Source: agenda.ge

Navy Recovers N75bn Stolen Petroleum Products

By Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja

Nigeria Navy has said it recovered N75 billion worth of stolen petroleum products in five years. The products recovered between 2015 and 2019 include crude oil, diesel and petrol.

It said a total of 2,287 illegal refineries were discovered and destroyed within the same period.

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Source: thisdaylive.com

Product Tanker Boarded and Robbed off Port-au-Prince

The product tanker Tosna Star was boarded and robbed by armed pirates off the port of Port-au-Prince, Haiti last Sunday, according to one of her crewmembers.

In an account posted on Facebook, crewmember Claudio Omar Benitez said that the Argentine crew of the Tosna Star has been stuck on board for months due to the novel coronavirus, unable to return to their homes. Their ship is currently at the anchorage off Port-au-Prince, and on Sunday, a group of armed Haitians boarded the tanker by the stern.

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Source: maritime-executive.com

Stable Seas report: What we know about piracy

SafeSeas is pleased to announce the first report resulting from collaboration with Stable Seas: What we know about Piracy

Authored by Lydelle Joubert, the report draws on desk-based research conducted between June 2019 and March 2020. It provides a systematic overview of data, answering the questions:

  • How is data on piracy and armed robbery collected?
  • By whom?
  • What kinds of information are available?
  • How accessible is the data?
  • What are the blind spots?

To download the report, please click here.

MarsecNews: This is a good overall read and covers the topic very well. Full marks to Lydelle and the team.

Nigeria to prosecute pirates under new law

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has restated its commitment to collaborate with relevant agencies and stakeholders for the security of the country’s maritime domain.

Director-General of the agency, Bashir Jamoh, stated this in Lagos during the official handover of pirates arrested by the Nigerian Navy for prosecution.

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Source: shipsandports.com.ng

Spike in sea piracy threatens offshore oil storage

By Sulaimon Salau

Rising activities of pirates in the Gulf of Guinea is posing serious threats to offshore oil storage model currently adopted by oil multinationals in the wake of supply glut.

This is even as speculations are rife that the coronavirus pandemic may lead to a spike in tanker vessel attacks and possible kidnappings.

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Source: guardian.ng

Marsec News: I’m aware of anecdotal reports from friends in the oil and gas industry in the region of pirates buzzing facilities and oil platforms in the region. They happen frequently and are rarely reported. Partly, this is because the pirates are chased off by patrol boats without attacking and partly because incidents continue to be under reported in the Gulf of Guinea. If tankers are used as storage platforms in the region, then they will almost certainly be targeted by kidnap and ransom gangs looking for easy targets.

Three sailors kidnapped by pirates off Gabon released

Three sailors, two Moroccans and an Equatorial Guinean, abducted nearly two months ago in the attack on their merchant ship off Gabon in the Gulf of Guinea, the epicentre of global maritime piracy, have been released in Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea announced.

On 21 March, an Equatorial Guinean-flagged merchant ship, the Elobey 6, was attacked by unidentified pirates off the Gabonese port of Port-Gentil. The three sailors had been kidnapped.

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Source: voaafrique.com

Pirates Still Make No Demands Regarding Russians Kidnapped In Gulf Of Guinea – Moscow

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik – 15th May, 2020) No demands have yet been heard from pirates that are believed to have kidnapped several Russian nationals in the Gulf of Guinea, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.

“Until now, the pirates have not got in touch and have not put forward any requirements. The Russian embassy in Cameroon is actively working with the authorities of Equatorial Guinea and the shipowner company to help establish the whereabouts of the abducted Russian citizens and secure their speedy release.

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Source: urdupoint.com