Piracy Alert Issued for Ships Sailing Off Somali Coast

VOA notes Piracy Alert Issued for Ships Sailing Off Somali Coast.

The bureau, an office of the International Chamber of Commerce, urges ships to stay about 100 miles off Somalia's coastline, especially in the country's northeastern and eastern areas.

The deputy director of the International Maritime Bureau, Captain Jayand Abhyankar, says he thinks attacks are on the increase because ships are sailing closer to the coastline, lulled by a false sense of security due to the absence of attacks during the past few years.

He explains the pirates' motivation.

"They are not particularly after the cargo," he said. "They're after just kidnapping the crew and then demanding random. Most ships pass the Somali coast because they have to go into the Arabian Gulf or the Red Sea and the warnings are really for those ships."

See my post here for the link to the complete IMB/ICC CCS warning.