Somali Pirates: Expect more attacks as weather improves

As mentioned before, as monsoon winds die down off Somalia, expect an increase in pirate attacks in the Gulf of Aden and off eastern Somalia - or, as noted here;

The calm August seas last year led to a series of hijackings -- including that of a behemoth Saudi oil tanker -- that spread fears of major disruptions to world shipping and spurred foreign naval powers into sending warships.

"The weather conditions have been the main reason" for the recent dip in attacks, Hans Tino Hansen, managing director of Denmark-based Risk Intelligence, told AFP.

"Another reason but of less importance is the success of the naval forces in repelling the few attacks that have been conducted in the Gulf of Aden," he added.

The pirates themselves had the bit between their teeth, with sea conditions already more propicious to boarding their prey from small skiffs in the Gulf of Aden and storms starting to recede in the Indian Ocean.

"We are definitely set on capturing more ships and gaining more cash. I only made 9,000 dollars last year and I was banking on more," Ahmed Mohamed Abdi, a pirate from the central town of Harardhere, told AFP.

"Foreign countries are still fishing illegally and no-one is blaming them, but when we try to recover something for the losses in marine wealth, we are accused of being bad boys," he lamented.

Well, Ahmed, there are those shooting at ships that have nothing to do with fishing while they are in international waters and holding hostages things that hurt your image. You know, by making you a pirate, instead of a coast guard.