Piracy on the increase in Gulf of Guinea

摘要

According to the most recent report from the International Maritime Bureau (1MB) Piracy Reporting Centre, the number of incidents taking place off the West African coast has risen sharply in recent weeks - including those attacks, robberies and suspicious incidents which are never reported to the authorities because vessel owners are concerned about the rising insurance costs and other expenses associated with working in the region. Although there have been no official reports of any piracy incidents involving OSVs in recent months, unofficially the 1MB believes several PSVs, AHTS vessels and crew boats have been targeted, with the pirates either only stealing a few personal items from the crew or failing to board the vessel.