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Piracy – latest attack raises stakes
21 November 2008
The latest piracy attack – the most audacious to date – hit the world’s headlines when Somali pirates seized their largest catch in waters outside the known danger zone.
The capture on 15 November of the Saudi-owned, Liberian-flagged Sirius Star very large crude carrier (VLCC) and its crew of 25 in waters 450 nautical miles south east of the coast of Kenya raised concerns because of the size of the vessel seized – the biggest tanker ever hijacked – and the location of the attack. The latest reports are that ransom negotiations are under way.
Meanwhile – in an indication of the seriousness of the latest attack – Maersk has announced that it is to re-route some of its ships via the Cape of Good Hope to avoid the growing danger in transiting the Suez Canal.
The ship, which now lies off the Somali coast, is carrying two million barrels of crude oil (a quarter of Saudi Arabia's daily output) worth more than $100 million. The crew include 19 Filipinos, two British citizens, two Poles, one Croatian, and one Saudi national.
UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband has expressed the British government’s view that payments for hostage-taking only encourage further hostage-taking.
Further incidents of pirate attacks have included:
- the Panamanian-flagged, Japanese-operated chemical and oil tanker Chemstar Venus was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden on 15 November with a crew of 18 Filipinos and five South Koreans
- a Thai-operated ship taken on 18 November off the coast of Yemen as it sailed toward the Red Sea
- a Greek vessel with 25 crew also hijacked on 18 November
- the Hong Kong-flagged, Iranian-operated bulk carrier Delight was also seized in the Gulf of Aden on 18 November with 25 crew of various nationalities.
However, there was good news for the largely Indian crew of the Japanese-owned Stolt Valor, which was hijacked in September. The ship and 22 crew have now been released, for a reported ransom of $1.1 million. The capture of the vessel had led to widespread protests by Indian maritime unions, who felt the Indian government was not doing enough to rescue the crew.
The Hong Kong bulker Great Creation, seized on 18 September with 24 Chinese and one Sri Lankan on board, was also freed last week.
Off the Nigerian coast, the Thor Galaxy cargo ship, seized by Nigerian militants on 16 November, was later released with all 10 Filipino crew safe and well.
Meanwhile, the Indian navy said it had sunk a suspected pirate "mother ship" in the Gulf of Aden. INS Tabar attacked the vessel on 18 November after it failed to stop for an inspection and opened fire.
And eight Somali nationals detained after crew from the Royal Navy HMS Cumberland boarded a pirate dhow on 11 November are now being held on the Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel Wave Knight.
All attacks and suspicious sightings should be reported to the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre, Tel: +603 2031 0014 (24 hours), Email: imbkl@icc-ccs.org.
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