23 - 29 Jun 2012 Talk talk; Freedom gained and freedom unheralded - Counter piracy conference dominates this week as Somali president asks for funds to eradicate piracy within a year as Puntland force loses funding. Somalia and Somaliland come together after 21 years. Pirates attempt surprise attack by hiding under blankets leading up to an attack. South African couple tell of the trauma of captivity. Pirates release two dhows but no details given on circumstances. Piracy causing environmental impact through vessel oil spill; only summer monsoon has a measurable effect on attacks. Gulf of Guinea is the second piracy front. So is it the military which are saving our seafarers, or is it the increased use of armed guards? Or perhaps both… Sri Lanka considers piracy as a serious security problem which must be addressed and dealt with forcefully including greater cooperation and information sharing, similar vein to Dubai conference. Japan warships visit India as they share converging views on the maritime areas of anti-piracy, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, information sharing. India will need to devise its own response to the challenge of piracy in the Indian Ocean. Indian city to establish a special trauma management care unit for seafarers and their families, affected by Somali piracy. Heightened diplomatic tension suggests that combating piracy might at times be used as a means to demonstrate goodwill and diffuse tension between political rivals says report. Djibouti opens new Naval Operations Centre. Presentation states that 220 Maritime Security Companies are in business now with 75% based in the UK. British investigator, killed by car bomb in Yemen, doubted that an oil tanker, the Brillante Virtuoso, had come under attack from Somali pirates armed with guns and grenades. Luxury charter motor yacht reportedly evades pirates in the Gulf of Aden. British tourist kidnapped from Kenya, states 'never seen this man before' in court case. MVs Albedo and Iceberg 1 crews continue to suffer as speculation on release rumbles on. Social media, open-source security and improving information sharing. Contents: Regional Activity; Released by Pirates; Pirates in Court; Private Security; International Response; Piracy Cost; Seafarers' Plight; And Finally...; Piracy Incidents; Situational Map The OCEANUSLive website will transition to a subscription service for registered users in the coming months. Notification will be passed to all users. Early bird, company/goup, and other discounts will be available upto that time. News and editorial webpages along with the Weekly Newsletter will remain free.

East Africa

Somalia's president on Wednesday accused the international community of refusing to fund the creation of local security forces capable of tackling piracy and al Qaeda-linked militants and urged them to pay up, reports Reuters.

"The international community spends millions of dollars (because of piracy) and when you ask them to contribute to building forces on the ground they evade our request," Sheikh Sharif Ahmed told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of a conference on piracy in Dubai.

Somalia has been mired in civil strife, grinding poverty, Islamist militancy and maritime piracy since warlords toppled military dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991, leaving the African nation without an effective central government.

Ahmed said he thought international donors such as the United States were reluctant to contribute funds because they were concerned that the money would be embezzled and said he was willing to allow them to pay and train such forces themselves to allay such fears.

"If they (donors) are willing to help ... we can give them the chance to come and do the training, to give salaries to soldiers by themselves," he said. Read more.

Seven Indians on board a fishing boat have gone missing from Masirah waters in Oman and may have been kidnapped by pirates, a media report has said, according to Jagran Post.

According to the report, coast guards in the country have been informed and the hunt is on to locate them despite adverse weather conditions. The missing Indians are all said to be from Tamil Nadu.

"They went for fishing as usual but have not returned yet. What I suspect is that they been hijacked by pirates," Saeed Rashid, owner of the fishing boat, told Times of Oman newspaper.

The boat reportedly went missing from al-Ashakara coast on Thursday evening. "They went to fishing to the inner sea. What we learnt is that they ran out of fuel and were stranded in the sea. They might have been kidnapped from there," Rashid said. Read more.

[OCEANUSLive comment: Since this report, NATO Shipping Centre has stated a dhow with 7 crew members has been released from pirate control on June 25. The Omani dhow, Shamsi, was hijacked June 20 and is believed to be the vessel in this case, although it has yet to be officially confirmed].

An oil leak this week contaminated coastal areas near Ras Al-Ara, near the Bab Al-Mandab strait on the Red Sea, reports Yemen Times.

According to Murad Al-Halimi, the deputy director of the General Authority of Maritime Affairs, the oil overflowed from a Somali ship’s fuel tank as it traveled from Dubai to Somalia. A Somali businessman, he said, owns the ship. Al-Halimi said the oil spill occurred following the ship’s run-in with Somali pirates nine miles off Yemen’s coast, near Ras Al-Ara and close to Bab Al-Mandab.

He said international forces rescued the ship after pirates attacked its fuel tank.

Yemeni Coast Guard forces in the Red Sea received a notice Friday from the Regional Center for Piracy Information Exchange, established to combat privacy and led by the Ministry of Transportation, that Ras Al-Ara district has been exposed to environmental contamination.

Yemeni Coast Guard forces discovered dead fish in Al-Hodeida from the oil spill.

After informing the General Authority of Maritime Affairs about the dead fish, a committee to check the fish for contamination was established. The committee found that the fish flocked to the port basin and, unable to escape the ship rotations, they died.

An investigation of the oil spill is in progress.

Danger Room journalist Richard Wheeler reports that the world may see a brief respite from costly, often lethal Somali piracy as we head into the summer months - Smithsonian Mag.com. The evidence is in a joint New Zealand–Australian study, Climatic controls on piracy in the Horn of Africa Region, 2010—2011. Unlike previous reporting, which proposed that both summer and winter monsoons reduced pirate attacks, Climate Controls on Piracy finds that only the summer monsoon has a measurable effect on attacks… The researchers found that while waves and wind during the winter monsoon was roughly twice that of non-monsoon months, this was not enough to deter pirates from operating in the Indian Ocean.

Which means that now, when the pirates are mostly back on land, there could be a choice time for military incursions into Somalia.

Commodore Ben Bekkering, the Commander of the NATO task force off Somalia, has opened a Twitter and Facebook account. In grasping the medium of social media networking, the Commodore has very quickly established a welcome presence that demonstrates to the shipping community the day-to-day issues, use of resources and facets of NATO's Ocean Shield operation. The posts on Twitter and Facebook show a more personal account than the standard fare from military media. One of his latest 'tweets' - Maritime Situational Awareness patrol by HNLMS Evertsen(Pic courtesy of @Oceanshield - Cdre Bekkering) shows his team conducting a routine check on a dhow in the high risk area.

The curious case of a reported attack. The luxury yacht, US-owned, Malta-flagged Lauren L, usually host luxury events, cocktail parties or large private gatherings at the Cannes film festival or the Monaco Grand Prix. It is often seen sailing to and from Greece. It can accommodate 48-50 guests and permanently carries a Swiss-trained doctor, and has a helicopter landing pad. But what was it doing going through the Gulf of Aden? Was it a luxury adventure charter? If the report is accurate, the yacht was attacked in the Gulf of Aden, but managed to evade a pirate attack with the aid of an embarked armed security team. The last question on this case... why did it not simply increase speed of its undoubtedly powerful engines and avoid the need for the use of weapons? West Africa

The [Nigerian] Federal Executive Council (FEC) is expected to deliberate on a contract for the design and construction of fast moving security patrol boats (FPB) -Business Day.

In what seems like a strategy to improve the nation’s marine security, the plan contained in a memorandum by the minister of transport, Idris Audu Umar, stated that the water craft were pegged with specifications described as “17 meters and 32 meters Manta MC ASD” for the Lagos pilotage district.

The Nigerian Navy reportedly purchased and commissioned several of these craft last year. These craft are specifically designed for coastal security and patrol missions, in law enforcement, coast guard and counter insurgency, as well as naval operations in coastal areas, with designs for very high acceleration, as the name implies.

With the clear concerns of marine security in Nigerian waters, the FPBs are built in consideration of new specifics arising in requirement of safety of sea routes and protection of ships from attacks of pirates. The vessels also focus on illegal drug trafficking, terror, performing search and rescue duties and safety at sea. Read more.

The Gulf of Guinea has become the second pirate base after Somali, reports Voice of Russia.

This came in a statement for reporters in Moscow by the Russian Naval Chief Victor Chirkov.

He pointed out that the sea brigands off Africa’s western coast act on a different pattern than the pirates in the Gulf of Aden.

The latter are normally content with plundering a ship and do not hold ship crews hostage to extort ransoms.

On the situation in the Gulf of Aden, Admiral Chirkov said that Russia sent two Pacific Fleet squadrons to the area in the first six months of this year as part of its anti-piracy mission.

Somalis living in South Africa were crucial in assisting in the release of two South African hostages freed after 20 months in captivity in Somalia, Garowe Online reports -AllAfrica.

The South African couple Bruno Pelizzari and Debbie Calitz, were freed following a ransom that was paid last Wednesday after 20 months of captivity in southern Somalia. The two were kidnapped by Somali pirates after a yacht they were on was hijacked while sailing in the Indian Ocean in October 2010.

According to Independent Online (IOL) a South African based media agency, the Somali Community in South Africa was essential in the release of the hostages.

The group which represents Somalis across South Africa was credited in assisting the South African government in locating the hostages as well as playing a substantial role in negotiations.

The Somali Community Board chairman, Abdulhakim Mohamed was in Mogadishu when the two hostages were released and was recognized as being one of the key negotiators who helped reach an agreement on an unconfirmed ransom payment. Read more.

The NATO Shipping Centre reports that a dhow originally pirated on 21 April 2012 has been released from pirate control.

OCEANUSLive believes Alabass, a Yemeni fishing vessel, hijacked in Arabian Sea, approx 17nm south of Ras Fatark, Yemen, is dhow in this case. A suspected dhow PAG is currently operating in the vicinity of Socotra Island NSC reported on 25 June.

Omani Dhow, Nebarkad, reported hijacked by pirates is believed to have been released from pirate captivity on 27 June, says NSC. The Indian and Bangladeshi crew are safely onboard the NATO task force warship Evertsen.

In both cases, no details of the health of the crew, whether any ransom payment was made or the circumstances surrounding the respective release has been made known.

Bruno Pelizzari will appear[ed] before an Italian prosecutor on Monday to give evidence against the Somalis who captured him and his girlfriend - Independent Online SA.

Pelizzari, who holds dual SA and Italian citizenship, and South African Calitz were freed on Wednesday in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, and flown to Rome via Djibouti.

The Italians played a key role in freeing them, along with the SA, Turkish, Qatari and possibly other governments, as well as other organisations such as SA’s Gift of the Givers charity and the Somali community in SA.

That is part of the reason they flew to Italy. But Pelizzari also wanted to see his 83-year-old mother who lives in Lake Como near Milan. The Italian judicial authorities also wanted him to relate the key facts of his ordeal in case they decide to open a case against those responsible for the abduction and other potential crimes, official sources said.

Crucial details of their 20 months in captivity and the circumstances of their release remain obscure, partly because the Italian authorities have decided to keep it under wraps for legal reasons until Pelizzari has testified, the sources said.

They were met in Rome on Thursday by SA embassy and Italian officials. Read more.

A British woman freed from captivity by Somali pirates in March told a Kenyan court on Monday she had never seen the man accused by Kenyan authorities of her kidnap, dealing a potential blow to the prosecution's case, according to Reuters.

Judith Tebbutt, who testified from Britain via a video link, was abducted from a remote beach resort near the Somali border in September by gunmen who shot dead her husband, David, before escaping by speedboat.

"I have never seen this man before," Tebbutt said, referring to the Kenyan suspect Ali Babitu Kololo.

"He was not one of the men who took me out of the banda (beach cottage). He was not present on the boat (nor) held me during the time I was in captivity," she told the court. Read more.

As successful piracy attacks drop, attention turns to understanding why we are now better able to safeguard vessels from attack. So is it the military which are saving our seafarers, or is it the increased use of armed guards? Or perhaps both… - Shiptalk asks.

There are arguments that the “coalition of the aggressive” is having an effect. The non-alliance navies, including those of Russia, Iran, India and China, are hitting pirates hard and this is understood to be having an effect.

Though some believe this is just urban myth, and these navies aren’t really getting into the pirates any more than the combined taskforce. It’s just that that seemingly shout louder when they do.

Many are of the view that its armed guards which have had the greatest affect – however the shipping industry does not want to admit their success, as they so not wish to see armed vessels as an institutionalised part of shipping.

Vigilance is key. Read more.

At a meeting of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Sub-Committee on Safety of Navigation (2- 6 July in London) the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) - which represents global shipowners and 80% of the world merchant fleet - will be opposing a proposal to establish a new recommended route for all ships in the Mozambique Channel that would be approximately 1,000 miles long- Maritime Executive.

The proposal has been made by Comoros, France, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, the Seychelles, South Africa and Tanzania, having been given impetus by work conducted by the World Bank.

ICS Director Marine, John Murray said: “ICS is very concerned with this proposal for a new recommended route in international waters which will result in all vessels following the same proposed track. This will increase the risk of collision to the hundreds of ships that would be using the scheme at any one time, particularly given the current lack of Vessel Traffic Services in the region. The concept could also set an unwelcome precedent for the management of deep sea navigation elsewhere, and will require very careful consideration by IMO.” Read more.

Tanzania is facing a tough choice, as Somalia seeks substantial support to build military capability of defending the country - IPP Media.

Recently, Somalia lodged a formal request to Tanzania, asking the government to help forming the army so as to stabilise the government.

Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, the president of the transitional government of Somalia, flew to Arusha where he held nearly four hours of closed door talks with President Jakaya Kikwete at the Ngurudoto Mountain Lodge.

“We want to borrow a leaf from Tanzania’s long standing peace and stability,” President Sharif Ahmed hinted to the media through an interpreter shortly after the talks.

He said that his country was in the process of structuring national armed forces and therefore needs Tanzania to help in this endeavour as well as to set up state organs and a viable public sector.

President Sharif Ahmed said that while things seem to be improving o the ground, bringing about meaningful peace in Somalia was not a completed task as yet. Experts say nearly 400,000 people have lost their lives from war and famine in the troubled country since 1991.

With the war-torn country’s transitional body preparing to hand over power in August, UN Secretary General Ban Ki- moon recently urged Somali’s near and distant friends to make a contribution in building a steady government there.

Twenty years ago, when the government of Somalia collapsed, few imagined that the country’s state of lawlessness would last for twenty years without respite, or spawn piracy on a vast scale, placing shipping security in the western Indian Ocean region on an emergency footing. Read more.

Sri Lanka considers sea piracy as a serious security problem which must be addressed and dealt with forcefully, Justice Minister Rauff Hakeem said - Daily News (Sri Lanka).

Hakeem, president of the 50th annual session of Annual Asian African Legal Consultative Organization (AALCO), said at the 51st annual session in Abuja, Nigeria, the escalation of sea piracy attacks in the waters off Somalia, the Horn of Africa and in Asia has emerged as a major maritime security problem for international commercial activities and navigation.

“The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) was ratified by Sri Lanka in 1994. Sri Lanka enacted the Piracy Act No 09 of 2001 which encompasses legal measures to be adopted in relation to incidents of piracy and criminalises maritime piracy as a cognizable and non bailable offence,” he said.

The minister said Sri Lanka is also a party to the Regional Cooperative Agreement against Piracy and Armed Robbery in Asia (ReCAPP) which is an important inter-governmental agreement to counter maritime piracy in the region.

“It obliges member states to increase international cooperation and sharing of information in the efforts of prevention of piracy attacks. Sri Lanka believes that the organised criminal nature of this issue demands a coordinated response from member states,” he said.

“We urge member states of the AALCO to form similar inter-governmental cooperative mechanisms to strengthen anti-piracy efforts. Sri Lanka calls on member states to take adequate national measures to combat piracy and to enact stringent national legislation to make maritime piracy a serious criminal offence,” Hakeem said. Read more.

Japanese training ships Kashima, Shimayuki and Matsuyuki are on a six-day visit to Mumbai. The ships are on an overseas training cruise and will be visiting 14 countries in the Indian Ocean Region, reports Times of India. The ships arrived in Mumbai on June 21 and will leave on June 26.

Captain Manohar Nambiar (Chief PRO-Indian Defence) said that commander of Japan training squadron Rear Admiral Hidetoshi Fuchinoue, is the senior officer present afloat. "The ships are on overseas training cruise among other visiting countries," said Nambiar.

He said, "Both Navies share converging views on the maritime areas of anti-piracy, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, information sharing, amphibious warfare training and submarine rescue operations. Japan has also been an important trade partner and a supportive friend of India in the world forums." Read more.

Six days ago on the high seas 13 kilometres east of Masirah, Oman, Somali pirates attacked a commercial dhow, boarded her and took a terrified seven-man crew hostage at gunpoint - Gulf News.

On the same day of June 20 only a few hours later, Somali pirates in a dhow — possibly the same one that just been hijacked — appeared 35 kilometres northeast of Masirah Island, Oman, and confronted an LNG tanker with guns blazing, according to the ICC International Maritime Bureau piracy reporting centre [OCEANUSLive comment: LNG tanker attacked at 0528 UTC, prior to dhow hijack at 1200 UTC]. “Pirates were armed with RPG [rocket-propelled grenades]. The dhow closed in to 50 metres from the ship and fired shots from their guns, of which, three hit the vessel. The captain enforced anti-piracy measures and managed to evade boarding,” the IMB reported.

The incidents were anything but isolated. Read the full article HERE.

The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) — the anti-maritime crimes arm of the International Chambers of Commerce in its 2011 piracy report documented that there were 439 reported incidents of piracy worldwide, slightly better than 2010 during which 445 such incidents were reported - The Hindu. The number of such incidents is an indicator of the seriousness of this issue. Nations are responding collectively and individually. While there are macro discussions on collective action, armed escorts, insurance surcharge, armed private security personnel are already deployed by the shipping sector.

India’s growing energy and commodity needs depend on transport through sea routes with high levels of piracy, especially in the Horn of Africa. India will need to devise its own response to this challenge. Are government security personnel, say from the CISF, on board commercial vessels the answer? Or will private security deployment find greater resonance? Read more.

His Excellency Ismail Omar Guelleh, President of the Republic of Djibouti, attended the opening of the new Djiboutian Naval Operations Centre - EUNAVFOR.

Djiboutian military and civilian authorities were present, along with representatives from the USA and France, who provided support to Djibouti for the building and fitting of the operations centre.

The centre provides the Djiboutian maritime forces with an enhanced capability to track ship movements in their territorial waters.

EU NAVFOR ships will be conducting exercises in the coming weeks with the Djiboutian Navy and Coast Guard and very much welcomes the opening of new operational centre as it is seen as another step in contributing to the fight against piracy and maritime capacity building in the region. Image - eunavfor.

The coasts of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden have been home for some of the worst acts of piracy for years, costing lives and billions of dollars in damage every year and threatening Indian Ocean trade and shipment in one of the most vital trade routes in the world, writes Mona Sukkarieh, a specialist in geopolitics and strategic studies based in Beirut, appearing in The Korean Herald.

But this part of the world is also emerging as an area of cooperation between (sometimes rival) countries and an opportunity to project power for others. Whether it is the U.S. Navy rescuing Iranian fishermen, or Iranian naval forces rescuing American commercial ships, it is interesting to note that such actions often coincide with heightened diplomatic tension suggesting that combating piracy might at times be used as a means to demonstrate goodwill and diffuse tension between political rivals. American and NATO warships, European NAVFOR task force, Iranian and Arab navies patrol the waters between the Strait of Hormuz and the coasts of Somalia. In the past few years, a number of navies, particularly Asian navies, have chosen to patrol the region and escort commercial ships for protection. What started out as a major maritime security issue is turning into a convenient opportunity for a number of countries aspiring to project power and influence beyond their shores.

Asian economies rely on trade to a great extent, and being resource-poor makes them heavily dependent on oil and gas imported and (usually) shipped from Africa and the Arab region. Securing a safe passage has, therefore, always represented a priority. Repeated piracy incidents in the Strait of Malacca in the 1990s have put them at the forefront of anti-piracy operations. Read more.

The UAE’s call for a global policy action on combating piracy comes in line with the maritime- piracy symposium that will be [was] held in Dubai on June 27-28 Gulf News. The idea is to enhance public-private partnerships and strengthen global engagement to tackle the problem. Piracy has become a scourge for sailors, ship owners and companies. It is time for all the stakeholders to come together and spread understanding on the issue and map out the challenges of response. Read more.

Viewing piracy as a matter of grave international concern, the UAE called today for a comprehensive, inclusive approach that can deliver a long term, sustainable solution to the problem - Khaleej Times.

‘Piracy’s destabilizing impact can only be mitigated through collaboration across political, military, financial and legal arenas. The need of the hour is to explore new ways to secure the freedom of those held captive, curb the reach of the pirates, provide comprehensive support to Somalia, and crystalise the unified stance created by our Public-Private Partnership,’ Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, DP World Chairman, said in his opening address to the 2nd high-level, public-private UAE Counter-Piracy Conference, co-convened by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and global marine terminal operator DP World.

‘Piracy is a matter of grave international concern, but, importantly, it is happening in our region and is therefore a matter of significant concern for everyone in this region. It is shocking that, even as we are gathered here, pirates are holding more than 200 seafarers captive, in often appalling conditions.’ Read more.

An historic meeting between the presidents of Somalia and Somaliland in Dubai today [Weds 27] may be the first step towards ending years of bloodshed there, reports The National.

The meeting, facilitated by the UAE, was the first in 21 years. Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, the president of Somalia's transitional federal government, and Ahmed Mohamed Silanyo, the president of the Republic of Somaliland, signed a declaration that paves the way for future talks and cooperation between the nations.

"This is a breakthrough and we are happy that our brothers in the north want to speak and negotiate," said Mr Ahmed. "As you know, all Somalis come from the same ethnic background, speak the same language and practice the same religion. So we are looking for solutions that satisfy all the segments of Somalia. Such negotiations need time and we hope it will succeed."

Mr Silanyo, Somaliland's president, voiced similar optimism. Read more.

Diplomats and business leaders at a Dubai conference are pushing for stronger partnerships between the public and private sectors in combating piracy off the coast of Somalia - Washington Post.

A statement issued at the end of the two-day counterpiracy event Thursday called for a “comprehensive approach” against pirates that includes national governments, international organizations and the global maritime industry. Read more.

Somalia Report, as ever, provides an analysis of the main talking point relating to action to counter Somali piracy, in this case, the conference held in Dubai this week. An extract follows: While most presenters rehashed incomplete IMB statistics and exaggerated financial cost of piracy from Oceans Beyond Piracy BP, maritime lawyer Stephen Askins, partner at Ince & Co. delivered some of the freshest and most useful information [PDF], machine gunning the audience with facts like:  220 Maritime Security Companies are in business now;  75% of them based in the UK;  40% of ships carry armed guards;  80% of ships comply with Best Management Practices;  Average length of ship theft is 250 days; and more.

Askins was essentially presenting the idea that regardless of much hand wringing, powerpointing and networking that goes on the maritime industry is busy taking care of their problems, with or without an international solution to piracy.

Missing: A sharp rebuke to the attendees that while mariners suffer continue to suffer the shipping industry is charting their own course.

Overall the second annual UAE Counterpiracy Conference provided yet another five star location for mingling, a chance for industry pundits to beat their dead horses and some awkwardly stage managed public performances. But this years event will be more remembered for what was missing. Read the full analysis HERE.

Much has been talked about piracy and its perpetrators, but more needs to be done for Somalia and its people - Khaleej Times. That was the message delegates took home from the second counter piracy conference in Dubai. Robust action against criminals at sea has paid dividends with three coalition naval forces and other navies taking the fight into the pirates’ lair in Somalia. In the battle against maritime piracy and its origins, the UAE has played planner to perfection and has brought together different countries and the shipping industry to strategise and evaluate their options. A comprehensive solution to the problem was what the UAE sought and it got it when the Somalia and Somaliland delegations came together for a common cause after 21 years.

“This agreement is important because it opens channels of communication between the two sides,” said UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr Anwar Mohammed Gargash.

He hoped it would be the beginning of many good things in the troubled Horn of Africa region. Somalia makes its political transition on August 20 with a new parliament. Read more.

Denmark has donated essential equipment to Kenya's coast guard. The donation is part of helping to lead the countries located off Africa's east coast to perform their own coast guard in order to fight piracy - Danish Maritime Magazine.

Tools and equipment is highly needed by the Kenyan coast guard, hence it was a content management and personnel that received two containers arranged as workshops, handed over b Danish Aero Commander John Hansen from the Navy Operational Command, given on behalf of Denmark. Read more.

High Speed Vessel Swift's (HSV 2) civilian master and military detachment officer-in-charge discussed combating piracy and continued cooperation efforts during an office call with Tanzanian naval leadership, June 26, 2012, says AllAfrica.

The office call was part of Swift's planned 12-day port visit to Tanzania for Africa Partnership Station East 2012.

Swift's civilian master, Captain Rhett Mann, and military detachment officer-in-charge, Lieutenant Commander Charles Eaton, met with Major General Saidi Shaaban Omar, chief of Tanzania People's Defence Force navy, and Colonel M.S. Masanga, commander, 701 Flotilla.

The visit was a chance for both groups to discuss emerging issues that threaten maritime security as well as focus on building upon the partnership that has already developed through several years of working together. Read more.

There’s been a spate of anti-piracy gatherings. The United Arab Emirates hosted its second such international conference—A Regional Response to Maritime Piracy: Enhancing Public- Private Partnerships and Strengthening Global Engagement—over 27-28 June in Dubai. A global conference in Turkey in early June preceded this. Even as that was in play, India’s national security adviser Shivshankar Menon addressed a high-level global meeting in St Petersburg, Russia, that focused on anti-piracy ways and means, comments Livemint.

In several respects, piracy—specifically, piracy off the Somali coast and Gulf of Aden—has come home to India. Even as Menon delivered his address, 43 India sailors were held hostage by pirates. This is a key global shipping channel that links Asia with Europe. A little further to the east is the Persian Gulf. Nearly 90% of India’s oil imports move through this zone.

The danger, which Menon called “a growing industry” in his presentation, is increasingly immediate, with expansion last year of the definition of the high-risk area related to piracy. It has expanded from the 65th meridian east to the 78th meridian east, which covers the entire west coast of India; and effectively covers the sea lanes that skirt Sri Lanka. A handsome chunk of Indian and global merchant traffic travels here. Read more.

NATO Channel TV marked the International Day of the Seafarer by launching a video series on piracy in the Indian Ocean. This particular episode focuses on a new report called "The Human Cost of Somali Piracy" which highlights the plight of hostages. View video HERE.

Shipping companies that have had vessels with valuable cargoes seized by Somali pirates have come to realize that some of these attacks were not just blind luck on the part of the pirates. Interviews with sailors freed once the ransom was paid began to yield hints that the pirates were receiving very specific information on what ships to attack, where those ships would be and whether or not they had armed security men aboard, comments Strategy Page. Police and military intelligence analysts traced these leads to criminal gangs in Italy, Britain and other countries. The gangs had people who could hack computer systems of shipping companies and obtain details on ships (cargo, location, security arrangements). This information was then sold to Persian Gulf brokers (some associated with local criminal gangs) who worked with the Somali pirate gangs (to negotiate ransoms, and arrange for the purchase of supplies and luxury goods). Read more.

A British national working in Yemen but who grew up partly in Plymouth was killed by a car bomb and most likely murdered by criminals, an inquest has heard - Bourne Local.

David Mockett, 65, who was working for a shipping company, died in the explosion in Yemen almost a year ago.

It is thought that a gang running a scam making fraudulent insurance claims for ships apparently attacked by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden had Mr Mockett killed.

The inquest in Plymouth heard that he had survived another attempt on his life in 2001, which was believed to have been linked to his work.

The father-of-two, who was employed as a marine shipping surveyor and consultant, had grave doubts about one insurance claim.

The hearing was told that Mr Mockett doubted that an oil tanker, the Brillante Virtuoso, had come under attack from Somali pirates armed with guns and grenades. Read more.

David Mockett defied the “bully boys” and paid for it with his life when a bomb blew apart his car as he drove from work in Aden in July last year, the hearing was told, writesThe Telegraph.

He had been investigating the Brilliante Virtuoso, a Liberian registered oil tanker allegedly attacked by Somali pirates 20 miles off the Yemen coast. In an email to his wife, Cynthia, 65, Mr Mockett had said that he “could not find any evidence of bullet holes or exposure to grenades”.

After his death, Mrs Mockett spoke to one of her husband’s friends, John Murphy, who claimed that Mr Mockett had been killed “because of his investigation” into the tanker. She said that Mr Murphy told her two other ships had the same captain as the Brilliante Virtuoso and both had also allegedly been attacked by Somali pirates, which was described as 'unusual’. Read more. Image - Courtesy of The Telegraph.

Piracy off the coast of Somalia has wreaked havoc on shipping industry, say specialist energy attorneys - Business Live.

Maritime piracy poses a significant threat to the feasibility of east Africa’s natural gas reserves, says Luke Havemann, founding director of specialist energy attorneys, Havemann Inc.

Mr Havemann was speaking at the Natural Gas Southern Africa Conference in Johannesburg on Wednesday. Read more.

The UAE has contributed USD 1 million to help build the capabilities of the Somali naval forces to fight rampant piracy off their coasts, and called for greater international support to upgrade Somalia's national response capabilities, reports Zee News.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE minister of foreign affairs, told a conference on counter-piracy that the threat of pirates emanating from the Somali coasts had escalated, as more seafarers were held captive for long time, facing violence and increasing inhuman conditions.

"In this respect the UAE is pleased to contribute USD 1 million to building and upgrading capabilities of Somali naval forces and coast guard to carry out their missions properly.”Read more.

A special trauma management care unit (TMU) for seafarers and their families, affected by Somali piracy, will be established by city-based organisations - the Company of Master Mariners of India (CMMI, Pune Chapter), the Institute of Marine Engineers and the Indian Maritime Foundation, writes Times of India. The TMU will initially be a mobile unit in Pune city. Later, it would be extended to New Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata.

Each unit will have a psychologist, psychiatrist and counsellors to assist hostage seafarers and their families handle mental and emotional trauma. Although there are no fresh cases of piracy affecting seafarers in Pune currently, this will be a mobile trauma unit and the team will go wherever required. Speaking on this initiative, Capt Sudhir Subhedar, chairman, CMMI, Pune chapter, said a proper process has been established to counsel seafarers during crisis situations. Read more.

As you read this, the 21-member crew – seven Pakistanis, seven Bangladeshis, six Sri Lankans, one Indian and one Iranian national – of Malaysian-owned MV Albedo lie within the jaws of Somali pirates, waiting for a ray of hope - DAWN.com. The Pakistani nationals are Captain Javaid Saleem Khan hailing from Karachi, Chief Officer Mujtaba from Manshera, Third Officer Raheel Anwar from Faisalabad, Fourth Engineer Zulfiqar Ali from Gujrat and Crew Members Ahsan Naveed from Jhelum and Faqeer Muhammad from Karachi. While their families await their safe return, the sailors continue to suffer at the hands of their captors amidst the choppy waves of the Indian Ocean. The region encompassing the coastlines of Tanzania, Kenya, Somalia, Oman, India, Pakistan and Yemen, and the Gulf of Aden, is a high-risk piracy zone – a sailor’s worst nightmare. It is considered one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world, used for carrying oil from the Persian Gulf to the Far East and Europe, making the possibility of the region being cordoned off due to the threat of piracy an impossible task.

Having ventured into the high-risk piracy area in February 2011, Captain Asif N Siddiqui – commanding container ships operated by Pacific International Lines, a Singaporean based company – describes Somali pirates as “highly strung and trigger-happy”. Read more.

Relatives of the sailors aboard the Dubai-owned MV Iceberg 1 - one of the ships held longest by Somali pirates - yesterday expressed renewed hope after learning that the release of the crew could be next month - The National.

The Indian Embassy said the sailors of the ship, which was captured on March 29, 2010, could be released by mid-July after family members visited Dubai in May to step up pressure on the ship's owners.

"We have been told it will happen in July," said the father of a captured sailor, asking not to be identified. "I have not spoken to my son in more than a year. I constantly worry about his health and condition. We just want them to be free and that's all we are working towards." MV Iceberg 1 has been in captivity longer than any other vessel currently held by Somali pirates. One of the 24 crew members died on board last year. The crew includes sailors from Yemen, India, Ghana, Pakistan, Sudan and Philippines. Read more. South African Couple Freed

Finally free after a horrific 20 months in captivity in Somalia, one of the first things Bruno Pelizzari did was eat chocolate cake - Timeslive.

Pelizzari, who holds South African and Italian passports, and his South African girlfriend, Debbie Calitz, were freed in a raid by Italian and Somali forces in the Lower Shabelle region in southern Somalia on Wednesday night.

They were kidnapped while sailing on the yacht Choizil off the coast of Tanzania n October 2010.

The yacht's captain, Peter Eldridge, evaded capture by refusing to leave his boat, despite being severely beaten.

After their rescue the two were flown from Mogadishu to Djibouti and then on to Rome, where Pelizzari's 83-year-old mother was waiting for them.

On their first weekend of freedom, Pelizzari and Calitz relished Italian food and wine with Pelizzari's mother and his sister, Vera Hecht.

According to Hecht, Pelizzari is still getting used to being able to make coffee whenever he wants to. Read more.

Deborah Calitz and Bruno Pelizzari, who were kidnapped by Somali pirates, said they were promised release three times before finally being freed, reports News24.

"They would treat us a little bit better every time it got closer to what they called a 'release'," Pelizzari told East Coast Radio in an interview.

"It happened three times before we thought 'it's never going to happen'." Read more.

A South African couple rescued from Somali pirates arrived at an emotional homecoming Wednesday after being "treated worse than animals" while in captivity for 20 months - AFP.

Debbie Calitz and Bruno Pelizzari, who were hijacked in October 2010 while sailing in the Indian Ocean and freed only a week ago, flew into Johannesburg where they were met by family.

"Some of the conditions weren't very humane. We were treated like untouchables, we were treated worse than animals at times," Calitz told reporters during a tearful press conference at OR Tambo International Airport.

"We weren't fed very well and we were handcuffed permanently, all the time, 24 hours. We weren't allowed to bathe much. Luxuries, we weren't allowed luxuries which meant no soap. We had one and a half litres of water a day between us, that was for the toilet as well. It was just terrible."

Somali authorities last Thursday said the pair were freed in an overnight joint raid by security forces and the army from "Al-Qaeda-affiliated" insurgents, with South Africa saying Italy was also involved.

It is not clear if a ransom was paid for the couple's release with Calitz saying that she believed it was a rescue operation.

"It was between the Somali government and the Italian government, they were the ones that worked together to help us, to be rescued. We were rescued, as far as we know, we were kept in the dark so we don't know very much," she said. Read more.

Image - AFP

“I was asleep when Debbie woke me up telling me there’s a boarding party arriving. And the next thing she said – it’s pirates.” - Amanpour CNN

So began the gripping narrative of Bruno Pelizarri and Deborah Calitz, a South African couple kidnapped off the coast of Tanzania by Somali pirates back in October 2010, and only freed last week after nearly two years of intense negotiations.

Now back in Pretoria, South Africa, they appeared Thursday on CNN's Amanpour – their first interview since being released. Bruno recounted the terrifying moment when he had to face the pirates: “What do you do? What do you say?” Somehow remaining calm, he “put a pair of jeans on and went on deck to face them.” “It felt like it was a dream,” said Deborah. “It wasn’t real. There was more fear in their (the pirates’) eyes than we had.” Read the full interview transcript HERE.

About 150.000 Danish kroner for near direct contact to more than 300.000 people is probably a price that will make most marketing managers prick up their ears - Shipping Watch (Denmark). 150.000 kroner is what it cost Maersk Line to create a presence within the social media, where the shipping company now has, among other things, more than 300.000 followers who have ‘liked’ Maersk Line on Facebook.

But why does a shipping company even need to be on Facebook and does it give the company added value to have so many followers on Facebook? It certainly does, says Head of Social Media with Maersk Line, Jonathan Wichmann.

“There are many good reasons why we are present within the social media. The primary reason is that we get closer to our customers. When we had 200.000 followers on Facebook, we estimated that about 40.000 of them were our customers. Furthermore, Facebook can help us recruit new employees around the world, and I have witnessed the effect it has on the employees and their understanding of Maersk Line,” says Jonathan Wichmann, who frequently receives e- mails including positive responses from the employees of the company.

The advantages which he sees in the company’s social media profile have been quite inexpensive to put in motion. Read more.

Looking back to the security paradigm of the recent past, he shows an image of Verdun, a battlefield in France in World War I, where over 300 days, 700,000 people were killed — about 2,000 per day. Later, in World War II, at the battle of Stalingrad, 2 million were killed over 300 days. We keep building walls: The Maginot Line, The Berlin Wall, the Iron Curtain. But “Walls don’t work.” - TED.com.

Stavridis thinks we need a different model: “Instead of building walls to create security, we need to build bridges.” He shows the Drina River, which forms the border between Bosnia, Herzegovina and Serbia. It’s a symbol of how we must move forward to create connections and a strong image of his sweeping model. “Open-source security is about connecting the international, the interagency, the private and public — and lashing it together with strategic communication largely in social networks.”

Threats to the global commons - What are the threats that we will face in the 21st century? He shows a slide of ship draped in barbed wire. As a Navy man himself, he knows, “This is not what a ship should look like.” The concertina wire is there because shipping is under attack from pirates, in the Strait of Malacca, the Gulf of Guinea, and all across the world. Last year 20 ships and 500 people were held hostage. Read the full article HERE.

Hijacks:

 NSTR

Unsuccessful Attacks/Robberies (All regions):

 Red Sea - LATE Report | Six skiffs with 3 to 8 persons in each approached a Liberia- flagged LNG Tanker, Neo Energy, underway at 0520 UTC: in position 12:49.6N – 43:15.9E, Off Mauyyun Island. Skiffs approached at speeds between 14 to 20 knots. Weapons were sighted in three skiffs. The skiffs approached and started tailing the vessels stern at a distance of around 200/300meters. The onboard security team were deployed and they showed their weapons to the approaching skiffs resulting in the skiffs backing off. Over the next 2.5hrs the skiffs approached the vessel five times from port and stbd sides before moving away. Reported (via IMB) 12 Jun.  Gulf of Aden - LATE Report | Togo-flagged cargo ship, Lady Jane, with 21 crew attacked by 3 skiffs in position 14:28N - 050:45E, approx 230nm NW of Socotra Island. The vessel suffered damage to its fuel tank but no injuries to crew. A 2-man AST was onboard. Reported 18 Jun.  Gulf of Aden - LATE Report | US-owned, Malta- flagged passenger cruise ship,Lauren L, reportedly attacked by an unknown number of pirates in position 13:58N - 051:13E. The AST fired warning shots, resulting in the skiffs moving away. Reported 19 Jun.  Gulf of Oman - Pirates armed with guns, in two skiffs approached a Curacao LPG tanker,Etagas, underway and closed to 0.6nm at 1516 UTC in position 25:15N - 057:16.4E, about 48nm East of Fujairah, Oman. Master fired warning flares and pyrotechnics, increased speed and manoeuvred the vessel to keep the skiffs right astern. UKMTO and navies in vicinity informed. An Iranian Naval warship responded and escorted the tanker until the skiffs were clear. All crew safe. Reported (via IMB) 25 Jun.  Indian Ocean - Two robbers armed with knives boarded an anchored Marshall Islands- flagged container ship, Cape Frio, just after a heavy rain shower at 2215 LT: in position 22:10.5N - 091:42.6E, Chittagong Anchorage 'B', Bangladesh. One of the robbers attacked the deck watch-keeper at the aft station who immediately reported to the bridge and managed to run inside the accommodation. Alarm raised. By the time the crew mustered it was noticed that around 15 robbers in the boat were moving way with stolen ship stores. The Master informed the Coast Guard who responded immediately. Reported (via IMB) 26 Jun.

 Arabian Sea - Malta-flagged Bulk carrier, MV Namrun, came under attack by a brown- coloured dhow with white superstructure at 1015 UTC in position 14:22N - 054:38E. The Master raised the alarm and took evasive manoeuvres. As the dhow closed, the onboard armed security team fired warning shots. The dhow continued to ignored the warning shots and continued to approach. Two pirates hiding under a blanket appeared with guns and fired upon the ship. An exchange of fire between the onboard security team and the pirates occurred until the pirates aborted the attack and moved away. No injuries to crew. At the time of the incident Master reported wind direction and force as SSW x 7. Reported 27 Jun.

The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) figures at 25 June are: 13 vessels and 185 seafarers held hostage. Vessels are reminded that the coalition forces' warships may not be in the vicinity of a pirate attack, subsequently, it is emphasised that seafarers can greatly reduce their chances of being pirated if they follow precautions as recommended in the Best Management Practices, increasing speed and carrying out evasive manoeuvres is a proven deterrent to piracy attacks. BMP version 4 is available at the link above; a high resolution version can be downloaded here.

Vessels are advised to exercise extreme caution when navigating in the vicinity of any reported positions of attacks and maintain maximum CPA with any ship acting suspiciously. Additionally, registration of vessel movement with MSC(HOA) prior to transiting the region is recommended.

An interactive version of this situational map is available through registration of verified access to OCEANUSLive

Horn of Africa Pirate Activity (Click on Map for Larger View OCEANUSLive.org permits the reproduction of this image providing source and link are published (Map ToU) Any suspicious activity should be reported to UKMTO in Dubai (Email UKMTO or Telephone+971 50 552 3215) and on entering the UKMTO Voluntary Reporting Area (VRA) bound by Suez, 78E and 10S.