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International maritime piracy hits worst level since 2003: report

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] 2009 marked the worst year for maritime piracy in six years, according to a report issued Thursday by the International Chamber of Commerce International Maritime Bureau (IMB). The total reported incidents of piracy reached 406, surpassing 400 for the first time since 2003. It is the third consecutive year that reports have increased rising from 239 reported incidents in 2006. According to the report, in 2009, there were 153 vessels boarded, 1052 crew members taken hostage, 49 vessels hijacked, 84 attempted attacks, and 120 vessels fired upon. Violence against crew has also increased with 68 injured and eight killed. The report showed that Somali pirates were responsible for more than half the reported incidents with 217 total. Piracy off the coast of Somalia continued early in 2010 when two ships were captured on January 2 off the cost of Somalia: the British-flagged Asian Glory roughly 600 miles east of Somalia and the Singaporean-flagged chemical tanker the Pramoni, in the Gulf of Aden north of Somalia. Earlier this week, the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York filed a superseding indictment against alleged Somali pirate Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse, claiming that he led the takeover of two additional ships. Muse plead not guilty to the charges. In November, Somali judge Mohamed Abdi Aware, known for jailing suspected pirates, human traffickers, and Islamist insurgents, was shot dead while leaving a mosque in the Puntland city of Bossaso. In July, the IMB reported that pirate attacks around the globe doubled in the first half of 2009.

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on January 14, 2010 (boomark / email).