Pirate attacks on ships increase by 14% worldwide, reports sea watchdog

MARITIME pirate attacks worldwide shot up 14% in the first nine months of 2007 from a year earlier, with Somalia and Nigeria showing the biggest increases, an international watchdog yesterday.

While Africa remains problematic, Southeast Asia’s Malacca Strait, one of the world’s busiest waterways, has been relatively quiet, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said in its report.

A total of 198 attacks on ships were reported between January and September this year, up from 174 in the same period in 2006, the IMB said.