Piracy in the 21st century (commonly known as modern piracy) has taken place in a number of waters around the globe, including but not limited to, the Gulf of Guinea, Gulf of Aden, [1] Arabian Sea, [2] Strait of Malacca, Sulu and Celebes Seas, Indian Ocean, and Falcon Lake.
Due to the crisis in Bolivarian Venezuela, issues of piracy returned to the Caribbean in the 2010s, with the increase in pirate activity being compared to piracy off the coast of Somalia, given their similar socioeconomic origins. [3] In 2016, former fishermen turned to piracy, emerging in the state of Sucre, where attacks occurred daily, often resulting in multiple killings. [4] By 2018, as Venezuelans became more desperate, fears arose that Venezuelan pirates might spread throughout Caribbean waters. [3] Many may have turned to piracy due to larger ships from other countries entering the waters of low-income country's (LICs), such as Somalia, to exploit resources like fish. Since many residents of LICs rely on fishing as their primary source of income, the depletion of aquatic resources like fish caused by these larger ships often leaves local fishermen without any means of livelihood once the ships depart permanently.
Piracy on Falcon Lake refers to criminal activities occurring along the border between the United States and Mexico at Falcon Lake, a 100-kilometre-long (60 mi) reservoir constructed in 1954 that serves as a known drug smuggling route. [5]
A turf war between rival drug cartels for control of the lake began in March 2010, resulting in a series of armed robberies and shooting incidents. All attacks were attributed to the Los Zetas cartel, occurring primarily on the Mexican side of the reservoir but within sight of the Texas shoreline. These so-called pirates operate "fleets" of small boats used to target fishermen and smuggle drugs. [6] [7]
While these events are colloquially referred to as piracy, all waters of Falcon Lake are classified as either U.S. or Mexican territorial waters. As such, these activities do not meet the technical definition of piracy under Article 101 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. [8]
Piracy in the Gulf of Guinea affects numerous countries in West Africa and has significant implications for the broader international community. By 2011, it had become a global concern. [9] [10] Pirates operating in the Gulf of Guinea are often part of heavily armed criminal enterprises that uses violent methods to steal oil cargo. [11] In 2012, the International Maritime Bureau, Oceans Beyond Piracy, and the Maritime Piracy Humanitarian Response Program reported that had carried out the highest number of vessel attacks globally, with 966 seafarers affected that year. [12]
Over the first decade of the 21st century, Piracy in the Gulf of Guinea has evolved significantly. Initially, smaller ships transporting employees and materials for oil companies involved in exploration were the primary targets in Nigeria. Over time, however, pirates grew more aggressive and better equipped. [10] By 2014, most pirate attacks in West Africa occurred in territorial waters, terminals, and harbors rather than on the high seas. This attack pattern has complicated intervention efforts by international naval forces.
Pirates in the Gulf of Guinea operate within a well-funded and organized criminal industry, supported by established supply networks. Increasingly, they utilize motherships to launch attacks, enhancing their operational range and efficiency. Their primary aim is to steal oil cargo, with limited interest in holding crew members or non-oil vessels and cargo for ransom. Notably, pirates in this region are infamous for their violent methods, which often involve kidnapping, torture, and the shooting of crew members. This violent approach is believed to be part of a deliberate "business model" that relies on intimidation and brutality to achieve its objectives.
By 2010, 45 incidents of piracy had been reported to the UN International Maritime Organization, rising to 120 incidents by 2012. [9] However, many attacks remain unreported. These acts of piracy disrupt legitimate trade interests of affected countries, including Benin, Togo, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. For instance, trade through Benin’s main port, the Port of Cotonou, reportedly declined by 70% in 2012 due to piracy. [10] The economic cost of piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, encompassing stolen goods, security measures, and insurance expenses, has been estimated at approximately $2 billion. [9]
According to the Control Risks Group, pirate attacks in the Gulf of Guinea had maintained a steady rate of around 100 attempted hijackings by mid-November 2013, ranking the region third globally for piracy incidents, behind Southeast Asia. [13]
Piracy in the Indian Ocean has posed a threat to international shipping since the onset of the Somali Civil War in the early 1990s. [14] By 2005, many international organizations have raised concerns about the increasing number of pirate attacks. [15] [16] These acts of piracy disrupt the delivery of shipments, escalated shipping costs, and caused an estimated $6.6 to $6.9 billion in annual losses to global trade, according to Oceans Beyond Piracy (OBP). [17] The German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) noted that an industry of profiteers emerged around the piracy crisis. Insurance companies, for insurance, saw significant profit increase as they raised premium rates in response to the heightened risks. [18]
The fight against piracy in the Indian Ocean was spearheaded by Combined Task Force 150, a multinational coalition task force, that established the Maritime Security Patrol Area (MSPA) within the Gulf of Aden [19] and the Guardafui Channel. [20] By September 2012, the peak of piracy in the region was reportedly over. [21] The International Maritime Bureau noted that pirate attacks had dropped to a six-year low by October 2012, with only one ship attacked during the third quarter compared to thirty-six during the same period in 2011. [22]
By December 2013, the U.S. Office of Naval Intelligence reported that pirates had attacked only 9 vessels that year, with no successful hijackings. [23] Control Risks attributed this 90% decline in pirate activity from 2012 levels to several factors: the adoption of best management practices by ship owners and crews, the deployment of armed private security personnel on board vessels, the presence of significant naval forces, and the development of onshore security forces. [24]
Pirates in the Strait of Malacca near Indonesia are typically armed with guns, knives, or machetes. They often carry out their attacks at night, targeting ships either underway or at anchor. If a vessel sounds an alarm, the pirates usually retreat without engaging the crew. [25] Similarly, in the Singapore Straits, pirates conduct nighttime attacks on ships that are either anchored or in transit. [25]
By mid-November 2013, the Control Risks Group, reported that pirate attacks in the Strait of Malacca had reached a global high, surpassing the number of incidents in the Gulf of Guinea. [13]
The Sulu and Celebes Seas, a semi- enclosed and porous maritime region spanning approximately 1 million square kilometers, [26] have been hotspots for illegal activities since the pre-colonial era. [27] These waters continue to pose significant maritime security threats to neighboring nations.
In recent years, the abduction of crew members has become the most prevalent illegal activity in the area, with many incidents attributed to the violent extremist group Abu Sayyaf. Since March 2016, the Information Sharing Centre (ISC) of the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) has reported a total of 86 abductions. [28] This has prompted the issuance of warnings to ships traversing the region. [29]
| Image | Flag (owner) | Name (class) | Crew (cargo) | Status | Date of attack | Coordinates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of release | Ransom demanded | |||||
 Bangladesh | Dilruba (Fishing) | unknown (unknown) | Attacked | February 2001 | unknown | |
| n/a | n/a | |||||
| Boarded off Patharghata. In a gun fight leaving one crew member wounded, the pirates stole supplies worth $139,373. | ||||||
 Panama | Lingfield (Tanker) | unknown (classified) | Attacked | March 7, 2001 | unknown | |
| n/a | n/a | |||||
| Attacked near Bintan, Indonesia and boarded by eight pirates who, after tying up and blindfolding the ship's three senior officers, stole $11,000 from the ship's safe. | ||||||
| Panama | Jasper (Cargo) | unknown (unknown) | Attacked | March 9, 2001 | unknown | |
| n/a | n/a | |||||
| Looted of $11,000 off the coast of Kosichang, Thailand by what was suspected to be members of a Thailand organized crime organization. | ||||||
 Indonesia | Inabukwa (Cargo) | unknown (unknown) | Attacked | March 15, 2001 | unknown | |
| (2 weeks later) | n/a | |||||
| Boarded off the coast of Malaysia and, after marooning the crew on a nearby uninhabited island, the pirates escaped with the ship's cargo of tin ingots and pepper valued at $2,170,000. The ship was recovered by Filipino authorities two weeks later, following the arrest of the pirates. | ||||||
| Panama | Marine Universal (Cargo) | unknown (unknown) | Attacked | May 2001 | unknown | |
| n/a | n/a | |||||
| Boarded by four pirates while at an anchorage in Lagos Harbor, Nigeria. Armed with long knives, they took one sailor hostage, and later threw him overboard. | ||||||
 |  United States | Maersk Alabama (Cargo) | 23 (17,000 metric tons) | Hostages rescued | 2009-04-08 | unknown |
| 2009-04-12 | n/a | |||||
| Boarded by four pirates while en route to Mombasa, who attacked from another hijacked vessel. After a prolonged struggle with the crew, the pirates escaped the ship via lifeboat with the captain, Richard Phillips. Philips was rescued from the lifeboat three days later by US Navy SEALs, who killed three pirates. A fourth pirate, Abduwali Muse, was detained and convicted of hijacking and kidnapping in the United States. | ||||||
 Thailand | MV Prantalay 11, 12, and 14 (Commercial fishing boat) | unknown (unknown) | Hijacked | 2010 | unknown | |
| n/a | n/a | |||||
| The attack took place near the EEZ of India; however, the pirates took the boats and fisherman back to Somalia. The pirates held them for ransom until they received what they had asked for. | ||||||
 Italy | MSC Melody (Cruise ship) | unknown (unknown) | Attacked | 2009 | unknown | |
| n/a | n/a | |||||
| About 800 kilometres (500 mi) off the coast of Somalia, pirates tried to attack an Italian cruise ship carrying nearly 1,500 people in 2009. An Israeli security team had been contracted to protect the cruise liner. Security personnel returned fire when the pirates started firing at the ship. The presence of a security team caused the pirates to turn around and abandon the attack. | ||||||
| United States | SY Quest (Sail boat) | unknown (unknown) | Hijacked | 2011 | unknown | |
| n/a | n/a | |||||
| In February 2011 Somali pirates killed four American hostages. The pirates hijacked a sail boat from the Arabian Sea and took the people aboard hostage, including a retired couple from California. When the US Navy got too close, the pirates panicked and shot the hostages. A navy spokesperson said they did not understand why the hostages would be killed, when the pirates' motive is to hold hostages for ransom.[ citation needed ] | ||||||
 Bahamas (  Isle of Man ) | Galaxy Leader (Cargo) | unknown (unknown) | Hijacked | 2023 | unknown | |
| (ongoing) | n/a | |||||
| In November 2023 during the Israel–Hamas war, Yemeni Houthis hijacked a Japanese-operated, British-owned cargo ship in the Red Sea, by landing on top of the deck from a helicopter. [30] [31] The Houthis claimed the ship was Israeli, a claim that Israel denied. [31] | ||||||
 Liberia (  Monaco ) | Central Park (Tanker) | 22 (phosphoric acid) | Hijacked | 26 November 2023 | unknown | |
| 26 November 2023 | n/a | |||||
| In November 2023, amid the Israel–Hamas war, the Central Park, a tanker ship owned by Zodiac Maritime, was attacked in the Gulf of Aden by suspected Somali pirates. The crew of the USS Mason (DDG-87) came to the Central Park's assistance and captured five pirates. [32] | ||||||
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, and vessels used for piracy are called pirate ships. The earliest documented instances of piracy were in the 14th century BC, when the Sea Peoples, a group of ocean raiders, attacked the ships of the Aegean and Mediterranean civilisations. Narrow channels which funnel shipping into predictable routes have long created opportunities for piracy, as well as for privateering and commerce raiding.
Piracy in the Strait of Malacca has long been a threat to ship owners and the mariners who ply the 900 km-long sea lane. In recent years, coordinated patrols by Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore along with increased security on vessels have sparked a sharp downturn in piracy.
Piracy in the Gulf of Guinea affects a number of countries in West Africa as well as the wider international community. By 2011, it had become an issue of global concern. Pirates in the Gulf of Guinea are often part of heavily armed criminal enterprises, who employ violent methods to steal oil cargo. In 2012, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB), Oceans Beyond Piracy and the Maritime Piracy Humanitarian Response Program reported that the number of vessels attacks by West African pirates had reached a world high, with 966 seafarers attacked during the year. According to the Control Risks Group, pirate attacks in the Gulf of Guinea had by mid-November 2013 maintained a steady level of around 100 attempted hijackings in the year, a close second behind the Strait of Malacca in Southeast Asia.
Piracy off the coast of Somalia occurs in the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel, and Somali Sea, in Somali territorial waters and other surrounding places and has a long troubled history with different perspectives from different communities. It was initially a threat to international fishing vessels during the early 2000s, only to rapidly escalate and expand to international shipping during the War in Somalia (2006–2009).
Piracy in Indonesia is not only notorious, but according to a survey conducted by the International Maritime Bureau, Indonesia was the country sporting the highest rate of pirate attacks back in 2004. It subsequently dropped to second place of the world's worst country of pirate attacks in 2008, finishing just behind Nigeria. However, Indonesia remains deemed the country with the world's most dangerous water due to its high piracy rate.
The Sulu and Celebes Seas, a semi-enclosed sea area and porous region that covers an area of space around 1 million square kilometres, have been subject to illegal maritime activities since the pre-colonial era and continue to pose a maritime security threat to bordering nations up to this day. While piracy has long been identified as an ubiquitous challenge, being historically interwoven with the region, recent incidents also include other types of maritime crimes such as kidnapping and the trafficking of humans, arms and drugs. Attacks mostly classify as 'armed robbery against ships' according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea as they occur in maritime zones that lie under the sovereignty of a coastal state. Incidents in the Sulu and Celebes Seas specifically involve the abduction of crew members. Since March 2016, the Information Sharing Centre (ISC) of the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) reports a total of 86 abductions, leading to the issue of a warning for ships transpassing the area.
Operation Ocean Shield was NATO's contribution to Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa (OEF-HOA), an anti-piracy initiative in the Indian Ocean, Guardafui Channel, Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea. It follows the earlier Operation Allied Protector. Naval operations began on 17 August 2009 after being approved by the North Atlantic Council, the program was terminated on 15 December 2016 by NATO. Operation Ocean Shield focused on protecting the ships of Operation Allied Provider, which transported relief supplies as part of the World Food Programme's mission in the region. The initiative also helped strengthen the navies and coast guards of regional states to assist in countering pirate attacks. Notably, the Italian Military Support Base in Djibouti contributed to anti-piracy efforts as part of NATO's Operation Ocean Shield, utilizing naval vessels such as the ITS Mimbelli and ITS San Marco in the Gulf of Aden, Indian Ocean, and off the coast of Somalia. Additionally, China, Japan and South Korea sent warships to participate in these activities.
Piracy in Somalia has been a threat to international shipping since the beginning of the country's civil war in the early 1990s. Since 2005, many international organizations have expressed concern over the rise in acts of piracy. Piracy impeded the delivery of shipments and increased shipping expenses, costing an estimated $6.6 to $6.9 billion a year in global trade in 2011 according to Oceans Beyond Piracy (OBP).
Operation Dawn 8: Gulf of Aden was a naval operation carried out by the Royal Malaysian Navy against pirates in the Indian Ocean on 20 January 2011. In response to the hijacking of MV Bunga Laurel, the Malaysian Shipborne Protection Team deployed an attack helicopter and 14 members of the naval counter-terrorism group PASKAL in two rigid-hulled inflatable boats to retake the vessel and rescue the crew. After one night of trailing the tanker, the Malaysian forces successfully retook the ship by force on 20 January 2011, resulting in the wounding of three and the capture of four out of 18 pirates, and all 23 vessel crewmembers rescued.
Piracy has taken place in a maritime area bounded by Suez and the Strait of Hormuz, in the region around the Horn of Africa, and waters surrounding the Arabian Peninsula; in the region of the Indian Ocean from the Red Sea through the Arabian Sea to the Gulf of Oman.
Floating armouries are vessels used to store military grade weapons. Being in possession of military-grade weapons in most jurisdictions is highly controlled. In the early twenty-first century, piracy in international waters became a serious issue for shipping companies. In response, services that supply weapons on the high seas, often referred to as floating armouries, were implemented. These armouries provide transfer services to private maritime security companies (PMSCs); the controlled weapons are available in international waters, but never enter patrolled territorial waters—they are delivered by an armoury to a client's vessel, and returned, in international waters.
Piracy off the coast of Venezuela increased during the crisis in Venezuela. The situation has been compared to piracy off the coast of Somalia, which was also caused by economic collapse. As Venezuelans grow more desperate, fears of increasing incidents and range of piracy have been reported. Venezuelan pirates often smuggle weapons, drugs and sex trafficking victims. Authorities have also been involved in piracy near the coast of Venezuela.
International piracy law is international law that is meant to protect against piracy. Throughout history and legal precedents, pirates have been defined as hostis humani generis, Latin for "the enemy of all mankind". The United Nations has codified much of the law in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which defines different types of piracy and ways to combat it.
As a practice of piracy, petro-piracy, also sometimes called oil piracy or petrol piracy, is defined as “illegal taking of oil after vessel hijacks, which are sometimes executed with the use of motorships” with huge potential financial rewards. Petro-piracy is mostly a practice that is connected to and originates from piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, but examples of petro-piracy outside of the Gulf of Guinea is not uncommon. At least since 2008, the Gulf of Guinea has been home to pirates practicing petro-piracy by targeting the region's extensive oil industry. Piracy in the Gulf of Guinea has risen in the last years to become the hot spot of piracy globally with 76 actual and attempted attacks, according to the International Maritime Bureau (IMB). Most of these attacks in the Gulf of Guinea take place in inland or territorial waters, but recently pirates have been proven to venture further out to sea, e.g. crew members were kidnapped from the tanker David B. 220 nautical miles outside of Benin. Pirates most often targets vessels carrying oil products and kidnappings of crew for ransom. IMB reports that countries in the Gulf of Guinea, Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Togo, Congo, and, especially, Nigeria, have experienced petro-piracy and kidnappings of crew as the most common trends of piracy attacks in the Gulf of Guinea.
Danish shipping's counter-piracy strategy is necessary as Denmark operates one of the world's five largest shipping nations in terms of operated fleet, controlling around 10% of global shipping. At any given time, there are approximately 70 Danish-controlled ships in the Indian Ocean and 30 ships in the Gulf of Guinea. This makes piracy in these areas is a significant concern for the Danish shipping industry and for the Danish state. In 2012, when Somali piracy was at its height, the piracy cost of Danish shipping was estimated to be between 130 and 260 million Euros.
Piracy kidnappings occur during piracy, when people are kidnapped by pirates or taken hostage. Article 1 of the United Nations International Convention against the Taking of Hostages defines a hostage-taker as "any person who seizes or detains and threatens to kill, to injure, or to continue to detain another person in order to compel a third party namely, a State, an international intergovernmental organization, a natural or Juridical person, or a group of people, to do or abstain from doing any act as an explicit or implicit condition tor the release of the hostage commits the offense of taking of hostages ("hostage-taking") within the meaning of this convention." Kidnappers often try to obtain the largest financial reward possible in exchange for hostages, but piracy kidnappings can also be politically motivated.
2023 in piracy was marked by 120 events of maritime piracy against ships, according to the annual Piracy and Armed Robbery Report of the ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB). 105 vessels were boarded, nine additional attacks attempted, two fired upon, and four vessels hijacked.
2022 in piracy resulted in 115 reports of maritime piracy and armed robbery against ships to the International Maritime Bureau. 288 acts of global piracy and robbery were recorded by the MICA Centre. Piracy had substantially increased in the Gulf of Guinea; the year began with five incidents each month, through March, in the Gulf, where acts of piracy had become heightened during 2015 through 2020, while, overall, piracy incidents declined globally.
2024 in piracy included 33 reports of maritime piracy and armed robbery against ships to the International Maritime Bureau during the first quarter of the year. Incidents that happend in 2023 and soon is reported to happen 2026 Crew continued to suffer violence, with 35 seafarers taken hostage, nine kidnapped, and one of the most important casualties threatened during the first three months of the year.
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