Marine Piracy: IMB Report for the first quarter of 2022

The ICC International Maritime Office (IMB) published a quarterly report on maritime piracy, which shows an almost unchanging number of incidents of maritime piracy in the first three months of 2022. The report takes into account that the waters of Southeast Asia replace the Gulf of Guinea as the most dangerous for commercial shipping, responsible for almost half of the piracy incidents in the first quarter of this year.

In the first three months of 2021, the IMB report shows a total of 37 incidents compared to 38 in the previous year. Nearly half took place in the waters of Southeast Asia, particularly in the Singapore Strait.

In the first three In 2021, in the Gulf of Guinea, piracy fell by almost half (43%) of all reported incidents. In the first quarter of this year, only 7 incidents were reported in this region.

However, constant efforts are needed to ensure the safety of seafarers in the West African region, which remains dangerous, as evidenced by the hijacking of a tanker off the coast of Côte d'Ivoire on 24 January. During the kidnapping, the entire 17-member crew was taken hostage. There have been reports of armed robberies in these waters.
International Maritime Office ICC (IMB)

IMB considers that coordinated and sustained efforts to eliminate piracy in the unstable waters of the Gulf of Guinea have been effective. In the first quarter of this year, there was no crew kidnapping compared to 40 kidnappings in the same period of 2021. Regional and international naval efforts also resulted in a reduction in reported incidents from 16 in the first quarter of 2021 to 7 in the same period of 2022.

The threats to the sailors still exist, the best example of which is the recent attack on the ship (massage) Arch Gabriel, which occurred on 3 April this year.The unit was attacked by pirates at 260 nautical miles from the coast of Ghana. The frigate of the Italian Navy Luigi Rizzo was sent to help. The crew of the ship saved the crew and made it possible to safely reach the nearest port.

The Singapore Strait became a dangerous maritime route for commercial shipping, where nearly 30% more incidents occurred in the first quarter of 2022. Although reported incidents are considered minor crimes of the nature of unplanned attacks at an opportunity and fall within the definition of armed robbery, they continue to pose a threat to crews. In 11 reported incidents in the waters of the Singapore Strait, two crews were threatened and one was taken hostage for the duration of the incident.

In most incidents, perpetrators are armed, which puts crews at risk even in the case of small incidents which are mainly the nature of attacks not planned at the opportunity. Coastal States are called upon to step up efforts to identify and detain these criminals in order to increase maritime security and facilitate safer trade on these important and strategic waterways.
Michael Howlett, Director of IMB

Outside the Singapore Strait, off the coast of Indonesia and Malaysia, four incidents were reported, compared with two in the same period of 2021.

According to IMB, the waters of Peru are worrying. In the ports of this South American country, 27 percent more incidents were reported, with 10 reported incidents. The Callao anchorage reported 6 incidents, compared with 5 incidents in the same period last year and only 1 in 2019.

Three incidents were also reported at the Macapa anchorage off the coast of Brazil. In two of these incidents, sailors were threatened or taken hostage.

Podczas gdy IMB pochwala wysiłki w zakresie reagowania w Zatoce Adeńskiej i południowej części Morza Czerwonego podejmowane przez służby porządkowe i zaangażowane w regionie marynarki wojenne, nadal podkreślają niebezpieczny charakter regionu i zachęcają do kontynuowania wysiłków w celu zapewnienia bezpieczeństwa na tych wodach dla marynarzy.

IMB continues to encourage rapid reporting of all incidents. Founded in 1991, IMB Piracy Reporting Center follows reports of piracy and armed assaults to help ships and provide the marine industry, response agencies and governments with the data needed to respond quickly to incidents.

Written by MD