Somali Pirates: Moving East, Take 3 Thai Vessels 1200 miles Off Somalia

Reported at MSC(HOA):

Pirates head east to counter EU NAVFOR success

20/04/2010 12.10 UTC

On 18th April 2010, three Thai fishing vessels from Djibouti, were hijacked 1200 nautical miles east of the coast of Somalia.
These latest hijackings are the furthest east of any pirate attacks in the area since the start of EU NAVFOR’s Operation Atalanta in December 2008, almost 600 miles outside the normal EU NAVFOR operating area. It is a clear indication that the EU anti piracy mission, together with those of NATO and CMF, is having a marked effect on pirate activity in the area.
The hijacked vessels, MV PRANTALAY 11, (26 Thai crew) MV PRANTALAY 12 (25 Thai crew) and MV PRANTALAY 14 (26 Thai crew), belong to a Thai based company PT Interfishery Ltd. EU NAV FOR can confirm that all 77 Thai crew are safe and well and that the vessels are heading towards the Somali coast. EU NAVFOR will continue to monitor the situation.

Actually, there have been reported attack at least as far as the one noted by the EU above, see NATO Shipping Center Somalia Piracy Update 20 Apr 2010, for this report of an attack on a merchant (charted by me above):

18. April 2010

WARNING, Pirate Attack, Indian Ocean (0929 N,06856 E)

Alert number 334 / 2010.

At 0726 UTC a merchant vessel was attacked by one skiff in position 0929N 06856E.

See also reports of ships being captured 1000 miles off Somalia, near India Somali Pirates: Turkish Cargo Ship Taken 1000 miles at Sea (23 March 10), report of attack off India here (11 March 10), a December 2009 report of a tanker attacked 300 miles off India here with a follow on here. The maps below reflect those earlier attacks:

If you want to stop these pirates, it's time to get serious in blockading known Somali pirate ports.

Click on maps to enlarge them.