We cover piracy, armed robbery at sea, IUU fishing, maritime cyber security and maritime security issues.
By Sulaimon Salau
The Federal Government has promised to employ all machinery to eliminate the act of piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.
The Director-General, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Bashir Jamoh, warned that individuals or organizations thinking of perpetuating any form of illegalities in the Gulf of Guinea should be ready to face the full wrath of the law with the antipiracy law in place.
To continue reading, please click here.
Source: guardian.ng
The Nigerian government has handed over the fishing vessel, Marine 707, suspected to be carrying out illegal activities in the Gulf of Guinea to the Ghanian authorities for further investigation and possible prosecution. Nigeria also handed over 51 crew members including 48 Ghanaians and three south Korea nationals to the government of Ghana and Korea respectively.
The vessel which had authorisation to fish in Ghana and Benin waters was arrested by the Nigerian Navy on May 18, 2020 around the southwest of Lagos waters with her Automatic Identification System (AIS) switched off after being suspected to be used for piracy or being used as a mother ship to conduct piracy in the Gulf of Guinea was handed over to the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) after preliminary investigations by the Navy.
To continue reading, please click here.
Source: premiumtimesng.com
Okafor Ofiebor
The whereabouts of two women and a baby who were abducted by gunmen suspected to be Sea Pirates along the waterways of Degema in Rivers State are still unknown.
The women and the baby were among passengers in the boat attacked by Sea Pirates along the waterways of Namasibi, New Calabar Rivers, in Degema Local Government area of Rivers State on Thursday.
To continue reading, please click here.
Source: thenewsnigeria.com.ng
Cybersecurity consultancy Naval Dome has reported a 400 percent increase in attempted hacks since February 2020. The primary cause is an increase in malware, ransomware and phishing emails attempting to exploit the COVID-19 pandemic, but Naval Dome says that global travel restrictions, social distancing measures and the economic recession are beginning to cut into companies’ self-defense capabilities.
In addition, since OEM technicians have a harder time traveling to service systems on board ships and rigs, they are increasingly making “remote” service calls that require the operator to bypass security protections – creating an opening for a cyberattack.
To continue reading, please click here.
Source: maritime-executive.com
By
Armed men suspected to be sea pirates have allegedly hijacked a passenger boat around the Namasibi axis of the New Calabar River, Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State.
It was gathered the boat was travelling from Port Harcourt to Ke Clan in Degema before armed bandits attacked the boat.
To continue reading, please click here.
Source: dailypost.ng
Emmanuel Addeh
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) lost over N20 billion due to 74 pipelines breaches by suspected crude oil thieves in January and February this year, the national oil company has said.
Information obtained from the corporation also indicated that from the illegal activities of the vandals, loss of refined products, especially petrol, amounted to about 56 million litres from January to April 2020, from its system 2B alone.
To continue reading, please click here.
Source: thisdaylive.com
The Department of Petroleum Resources said nine vessels allegedly involved in oil theft had been handed over to the Nigerian Navy and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Sarki Auwalu, Director, DPR, made the disclosure on Wednesday during an online interactive session with the media on topical issues in the oil and gas industry.
To continue reading, please click here.
Source: theeagleonline.com.ng
The French frigate FS “Languedoc” has begun its deployment under EMASOH (European-led Maritime Awareness in the Strait of Hormuz) command since May 19.
EMASOH press release
In order to ensure a safe navigational environment and to enhance maritime situational awareness, the FS Languedoc will be operating closely together with the Dutch frigate “HNLMS de Ruyter” and the French Maritime Patrol Aircraft Atlantique 2.
“Our sensors and our NH90 helicopter allow us a permanent watch in the area to enhance the common maritime security. We are looking forward to contribute to the security of navigation and the free flow of commerce in an area that is crucial for the world economy and European interests”
Captain Jean-Pierre Helluy, commanding officer of the FS Languedoc.
To continue reading, please click here.
Source: navalnews.com
Written by Alex Papadovassilakis
The discovery of large amounts of cocaine in cargo shipped from Honduran and Guatemalan ports has revealed the difficulties in securing maritime shipping operations on the northern stretch of Central America’s Caribbean coast.
Customs officials at the port of Le Havre in northern France found 1.4 tons of cocaine hidden inside a shipping container transporting coffee, according to a statement released by French authorities on May 19.
To continue reading, please click here.
Source: insightcrime.org
In a statement Thursday, the Cyprus Shipping Chamber (CSC) expressed “growing frustration at the ineffectiveness of the international community” in solving the longstanding problem of piracy and maritime kidnapping in the Gulf of Guinea.
Kidnap-for-ransom incidents occur with regularity in the waters off Nigeria, Togo, Benin, Equatorial Guinea and neighboring states. Pirate attacks have been common in the region for decades, but in recent years they have shifted away from petroleum theft in favor of crew abduction. The region now leads the world for kidnappings at sea.
To continue reading, please click here.
Source: maritime-executive.com
Maritime Security News 