By Godwin Oritse, with agency report
ABOUT 43 vessels and 58 seafarers were attacked and captured in the first quarter of 2017, slightly more than the same period last year, according to the latest International Chamber of Commerce, ICC, International Maritime Bureau, IMB, piracy report.
The global report highlights persisting violence in piracy hotspots off Nigeria and around the Southern Philippines, where two crew members were killed in February. Indonesia also reported frequent incidents, mostly low-level thefts from anchored vessels.
In total, 33 vessels were boarded and four fired upon in the first three months of 2017.
According to the report, armed pirates hijacked two vessels, both off the coast of Somalia, where no merchant ship had been hijacked since May 2012. Four attempted incidents were also received.
The report said of the 27 seafarers kidnapped worldwide for ransom between January and March 2017, 63 per cent were in the Gulf of Guinea, adding that Nigeria was the main kidnap hotspot, with 17 crew taken in three separate incidents, up from 14 in the same period last year.
“All three vessels, a general cargo ship, a tanker and a bulk carrier, were attacked while underway 30-60 nautical miles off the Bayelsa coast. Three more ships were fired upon at up to 110 nautical miles from land, and many other attacks are believed to go unreported.”
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