The ICC Commercial Crime Services' International Maritime Bureau (IMB) is warning small tankers to maintain strict antipiracy measures in the South China Sea following a spate of tanker hijackings in the region, GAC reported in its daily Hot Port News report. At least six known cases of coastal tankers being hijacked for their cargoes of diesel or gas oil have been reported since April this year, sparking fears of a new trend in pirate attacks in the area. Up until then, the majority of attacks in the region were vessels boarded for petty theft. The latest hijackings seem to follow a specific modus operandi, where armed pirates seize a small tanker and siphon off its cargo to large bunker barges or other small tankers in a ship-to-ship operation.
