New US maritime advisory for the Gulf of Guinea
24 per cent increase in incidence of piracy in Gulf of Guinea prompts US to revise guidance on the region.
Marc Allen, Maritime Direct UK.
The US Department of Transportation Maritime Administration has revised its advice to vessels transiting and operating in the Gulf of Guinea (GoG), reports Dryad Global today. The current advisory cancels USMA 2020-012 and will expire on 7th July 2021, and states that piracy, armed robbery, and kidnapping for ransom continue to pose a significant threat to US-flagged vessels in the GoG.
An Office of Naval Intelligence report says that the total incidence of piracy is up 24 per cent in the region, with the number of kidnappings and hijackings declining 16 per cent. Boardings and attempted boardings with the intent to steal constitute the most common type of incident, but a third of attacks entail hijacking or kidnapping.
Approximately 51 per cent of incidents are taking place off Nigeria, a decrease of 71 per cent from 2019 and indicates that pirates are travelling further to target vessels. Gangs have used motherships to operate up to 200nm offshore and generally target high-value crew members for use as hostages.
