We cover piracy, armed robbery at sea, IUU fishing, maritime cyber security and maritime security issues.
A Saudi Arabian-led coalition fighting Houthi forces in Yemen has declared a ceasefire, according to officials. Sources told the BBC the ceasefire will come into effect on Thursday in support of UN efforts to end the five-year-old war.
The coalition, backed by Western military powers, has been fighting against Houthi forces aligned to Iran since March 2015. It’s unclear if the Houthi forces will also observe the ceasefire.
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Source: bbc.co.uk
Evidence suggests that Iran has deployed an array of anti-ship missiles and large rockets overlooking Strait of Hormuz. The Strait is vital for the supply of oil from the Arab states of the Persian Gulf. The waterway is being patrolled by U.S. Navy and its allies to protect vessels from Iranian action.
Multiple amateur videos and photos of the weapons lined up on overlooking the beach began surfacing on social media on April 4. Geospatial analysis has confirmed that the location of one of the batteries is on Qeshm Island.
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Source: forbes.com
Sri Lanka’s Defence Ministry said the drugs had an estimated street value in Colombo of about 12,500 million rupees ($65 million), making it the country’s biggest single seizure of drugs.
COLOMBO: The Sri Lankan Navy intercepted a vessel carrying a large consignment of narcotics, which is estimated to be worth USD 65 million and arrested nine Pakistani nationals in an operation on Wednesday. According to a statement issued by the Sri Lankan Navy, the seized vessel was carrying USD 65 million worth of crystal methamphetamine and ketamine in the country’s biggest drugs bust.
Acting on a tip-off, authorities raided a flagless vessel in the country’s southern waters and arrested nine Pakistani men suspected of smuggling the drugs.
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Source: zeenews.india.com
Three members of Yemen’s Houthi rebel group were killed Wednesday in a naval operation by the pro-government Yemeni naval forces in the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah, a Yemeni military official said.
“A unit of the fifth naval zone carried out a successful operation deep in the Houthi-controlled areas in the northern parts of Hodeidah,” the official said on condition of anonymity. He said that the operation resulted in the killing of three Houthi members as well as seizing a boat along with its driver.
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Source: yemenonline.info
Gareth Jennings, London
The US military has trialled the use of the Boeing AH-64 Apache attack helicopter in the maritime anti-surface warfare (ASuW) role in the Middle East.
The US Naval Forces Central Command (USNAVCENT) announced on 2 April that it has conducted joint naval and air integration operations with US Army AH-64E Apache Guardian helicopters assigned to US Army Central Command’s (USARCENT) Task Force Saber.
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Source: janes.com
Master asked about crew and cargo before armed patrol ships departed
By Gary Dixon
A US-flagged boxship has reported being surrounded by heavily armed Iranian patrol boats on Thursday in the Strait of Hormuz.
Security consultancy Ambrey said the incident took place 16 nautical miles south-east of Abu Musa at 0300 UTC.
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Source: tradewindsnews.com
The captain of a US aircraft carrier carrying more than 4,000 crew has called for urgent help to halt a coronavirus outbreak on his ship.
Scores of people on board the Theodore Roosevelt have tested positive for the infection. The carrier is currently docked in Guam.
“We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die,” Captain Brett Crozier wrote in a letter to the Pentagon.
Captain Crozier recommended quarantining almost the entire crew.
In the letter Captain Crozier said that with large numbers of sailors living in confined spaces on the carrier isolating sick individuals was impossible.
The coronavirus’ spread was now “ongoing and accelerating”, he warned, in the letter dated 30 March.
“Decisive action is needed,” he said.
“Removing the majority of personnel from a deployed US nuclear aircraft carrier and isolating them for two weeks may seem like an extraordinary measure. This is a necessary risk.”
It is not clear how many crew members on the Theodore Roosevelt have the coronavirus. The San Francisco Chronicle, which first reported on the letter, said at least 100 sailors were infected.
Speaking to Reuters news agency, a US Navy spokesman said the service was “moving quickly to take all necessary measures to ensure the health and safety of the crew of USS Theodore Roosevelt”.
Source: bbc.co.uk
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