We cover piracy, armed robbery at sea, IUU fishing, maritime cyber security and maritime security issues.
Okafor Ofiebor
More than 24 hours after daredevil gunmen suspected to be Sea pirates at about noon on Thursday hijacked two boats along Port Harcourt-Bonny route, the Rivers State Police Command is yet to comment on the whereabouts of about 24 passengers who were taken into unknown destinations in the mangroves.
Curiously too, the Rivers Government has also not reacted to to hijack and eventual disappearance of the 24 passengers.
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Source: pmnewsnigeria.com
This revised Advisory cancels U.S. Maritime Advisory 2019-005
1. Reference: U.S. Maritime Alerts 2018-004A, 2018-004B, 2018-008A.
2. Issue: Multiple instances of significant GPS interference have been reported by vessels operating in the Eastern and Central Mediterranean Sea. In the Central Mediterranean Sea, these reports have been concentrated between Libya and Malta, specifically in areas offshore of Libya and to the east and the northwest of Malta. In the Eastern Mediterranean, these reports have been concentrated near Port Said, Egypt, the Suez Canal, and in the vicinity of the Republic of Cyprus. Instances of similar interference were also reported between Hadera, Israel and Beirut, Lebanon. This interference is resulting in lost GPS signals affecting bridge navigation, GPS-based timing and communications equipment. Satellite communications equipment may also be impacted.
3. Guidance: Exercise caution when transiting these areas. The U.S. Coast Guard Navigation Center (NAVCEN) and NATO Shipping Center websites contain information regarding effective navigation practices for vessels experiencing GPS interference. The information reaffirms safe navigation practices when experiencing GPS disruptions, provides useful details on reporting disruptions, and is intended to generate further discussion within the maritime community about other disruption mitigation practices and procedures. This guidance also recommends reporting such incidents in real time; noting critical information such as the location (latitude/longitude), date, time, and duration of the outage/disruption; and providing photographs or screen shots of equipment failures experienced to facilitate analysis. The NAVCEN information is available at: https://go.usa.gov/xQBaU.
4. Contact Information: GPS disruptions or anomalies should be reported immediately to the NAVCEN at https://go.usa.gov/xQBaw or via phone at 703-313-5900, 24-hours a day. NAVCEN will further disseminate reported instances of GPS interference in this region to the NATO Shipping Center.
5. Cancellation: This message will automatically expire on March 22, 2020.
For more information about U.S. Maritime Alerts and Advisories, including subscription details, please visit http://www.marad.dot.gov/MSCI.
Source: maritime.dot.gov
(MENAFN – Colombo Gazette) The head of Avant-Garde’s Maritime Security Division, Vishwajith Nandana Diyabalanage, was arrested by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) today.
He was arrested when he returned to the country from Singapore. Diyabalanage was wanted over ongoing investigations into Avant-Garde.
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Source: menafn.com
By Shola Oyeyipo
Abuja — House of Representatives Thursday resolved to set up an ad-hoc committee to ascertain the quantity of oil that is stolen on a daily basis and those responsible for such theft in the country.
The committee would also be mandated to determine the volume of oil extracted in the country on a daily basis, determine the quantity sold at the internal markets and what is consumed locally.
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Source: allafrica.com
Okafor Ofiebor
Sea pirates at about noon today, Thursday, September 26, hijacked two boats on the Port Harcourt-Bonny waterways, whisking away the 24 passengers inside the boats.
An Eyewitness, Ezekiel Hart, and an indigene of Bonny, said the two boats took off from Port Harcourt jetty and were fully loaded passengers and goods. He said the passengers and crew were sailing smoothly until the armed pirates ambushed them at a location on the high seas called “Yellow Platform”.
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Source: thenewsnigeria.com.ng
DUBAI (Reuters) – The British-flagged Stena Impero tanker left Iran’s Bandar Abbas port on Friday after being detained since July by Iranian forces and was heading toward international waters.
The Stena Impero was seized by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in the Strait of Hormuz waterway for alleged marine violations two weeks after Britain detained an Iranian tanker off the territory of Gibraltar. The Iranian ship was released in August.
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Source: reuters.com
Nigerian Navy (NN) says it has arrested 26 crew and confiscated two fishing trawlers belonging to a Nigerian Company, (ORC fishing and food processing Limited) for illegal fishing activities.
The Operation Commander, Operation FORMOSO, Suleiman Ibrahim, told News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that his men also arrested four foreigners for illegal fishing activities within the restricted distance of five nautical miles off the Nigerian coastline.
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Source: premiumtimesng.com
The Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Lagos command, has said another seven suspected Premuim Motor Spirit (PMS) illegal dealers have been handed to the command by the Nigerian Navy.
The Spokesperson for NSCDC, Lagos command, Mrs Kehinde Bada-Okoli, who disclosed to newsmen on Wednesday, said the suspects are all male. Bada-Okoli, said some of the items recovered from the suspects includes 80 drums of 250 litres of PMS and 100 of 250 liter empty drums.
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Source: thenationonlineng.net
JACKSONVILLE— The Coast Guard Cutter Valiant crew intercepted a drug-laden, 40-foot self-propelled semi-submersible (SPSS) in the Eastern Pacific.
While on routine patrol in the Eastern Pacific, Valiant’s crew interdicted a self-propelled semi-submersible in international waters carrying approximately 12,000 pounds of cocaine, worth over $165 million and apprehended four suspected drug smugglers.
The semi-submersible was originally detected and monitored by maritime patrol aircraft (MPA), and the Valiant crew was diverted by Joint Interagency Task Force South (JIATF-S) to interdict the semi-submersible, arriving after sunset. The Valiant crew launched two small boats with boarding teams made up of Valiant crew and two members of the Coast Guard Pacific Tactical Law Enforcement Team, successfully interdicting the semi-submersible in the early morning hours, who subsequently led and conducted a full law enforcement boarding with the assistance of Colombian Naval assets that arrived on scene shortly after.
Approximately over 1,100 pounds of cocaine were recovered and offloaded to the Valiant during the operations. The remaining cocaine on the semi-submersible could not be safely extracted due to stability concerns of the vessel. The joint boarding successfully stopped a drug smuggling vessel and also strengthened international relations and communications between the two partner nations.
According to Valiant’s commanding officer, the interdiction coincided with a time-honored mariner’s milestone and tradition of crossing the equator which made both events even more meaningful part of the ship’s patrol.
“There are no words to describe the feeling Valiant crew is experiencing right now,” said Cmdr. Matthew Waldron, Valiant’s Commanding Officer. “In a 24-hour period, the crew both crossed the equator and intercepted a drug-laden self-propelled semi-submersible vessel. Each in and of themselves is momentous events in any cutterman’s career. Taken together, however, it is truly remarkably unprecedented This interdiction was an all-hands-on-deck evolution, and each crew member performed above and beyond the call of duty. Additionally, we could not have successfully completed this interdiction without the love and support of our families back home, many of whom evacuated from Jacksonville this week for Hurricane Dorian. To the Valiant families, a heartfelt ‘Thank You!’”
The Valiant is a multi-mission 210-foot Medium-Endurance Cutter commissioned in 1967. Missions include search and rescue, maritime law enforcement, marine environmental protection, homeland security, and national defense operations.
Source: content.govdelivery.com
Olaleye Aluko
The Nigerian Navy has urged international oil companies operating in the Niger Delta region to ensure information and intelligence sharing as parts of efforts to combat oil theft and achieve a safe environment in the region.
The Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice-Admiral Ibok Ete-Ibas, stated this on Tuesday when he received the Managing Director of Nigerian Agip Oil Company Limited, Mr Lorenzo Fiorillo, at the naval headquarters in Abuja.
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Source: punchng.com
Maritime Security News 