Noel Choong News

Since 2010, there has been a steadily increasing trend of piracy attacks in Southeast Asia, according to a report released by UNITAR (UN Institute for Training and Research), with 150 separate incidents just from last year alone. After significant strides in reducing the number of hijackings near war-torn Somalia over the past few years, the United Nations declared last month that the epicenter of piracy activity is now in waters off Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. The MT Oriental Glory, a Malaysian tanker carrying oil gas cargo, was hijacked two weeks ago in the South China Sea, an apparent and alarming verification that this report is already coming to fruition.

A Thai oil tanker reported missing two days ago has been recovered with all of its crew members safe but pirates who hijacked the tanker took its cargo and damaged communications gear, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said on Monday. The MT Orapin 4 lost contact with authorities after departing for Indonesia from a terminal in Singapore on Friday, prompting the IMB to send an alert shortly after. The tanker arrived in Thailand's Sri Racha port on Sunday evening and Thai authorities will be investigating the incident, Noel Choong, the head of IMB's Kuala Lumpur-based Piracy Reporting Center, told Reuters. Pirates [also] raided a tanker off the coast of Malaysia in late April, taking 3 million litres of diesel. (By Al-Zaquan Amer Hamzah

A Thai diesel oil tanker with 14 crew members en route from Singapore to Indonesia is believed to have been hijacked, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said on Saturday, the second major case in months on one of the world's busiest waterways. "It could be a hijacking. We have sent signals for ships in the area to keep a lookout and the authorities have been alerted," Noel Choong, the head of IMB's Kuala Lumpur-based Piracy Reporting Center, told Reuters on Saturday. Authorities lost contact with the MT Orapin 4 after it departed from a terminal in Singapore on May 27, according to a report by the IMB. It was headed for Pontianak, Indonesia.

Armed pirates raided an oil tanker off the coast of Malaysia and took three crew members with them, Malaysian maritime officials said on Wednesday, underscoring increasing threats to shipping in one of the world's busiest waterways. The incident in the Malacca Strait, a route for about a quarter of the world's seaborne oil trade, has fueled fears piracy could be on the rise in the area and drive up ship insurance premiums. "We are very concerned," said Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's Malaysia-based Piracy Reporting Centre, who added the ship was hijacked while sailing near the Malaysia town of Port Klang. "It's the first time this has happened so far north in the Malacca Strait, and the first time they have kidnapped the crew.

The ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB) commends Vietnamese authorities for recapture of hijacked tankship taken to their waters. The Malaysian-owned tanker lost communication on 17 November 2012 whilst en route from Pasir Gudang to the port of Miri. Following an IMB alert, Vietnamese authorities were able to intercept the vessel and arrest 11 suspects on 22 November 2012. The vessel’s crew had been cast adrift the previous day and had been rescued by fishermen.The vessel had been repainted and reflagged in an effort to conceal its identity. This is the first case of a laden tanker being hijacked in the region for a number of years. Every year there are a few cases of tugs and barges being hijacked in south east Asia.

A Chemical tanker, with 22 crew members on board, has been hijacked by armed pirates in the Gulf of Aden near - the 12th ship to be seized in the waterway since July 20, a maritime official said on Tuesday. The vessel from Hong Kong was heading towards through a maritime security corridor in the Gulf, patrolled by an international naval force, when it was attacked on Monday, Noel Choong of the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said.   With the hijacking of the tanker, the tally of the ships hijacked off the coast of this year has reached 54. Source:  The Hindu

Pirate attacks worldwide surged 40 percent in 1999 as economic and political troubles in Indonesia spurred a dramatic increase in incidents in Southeast Asia. The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said in its annual report that the number of actual and attempted pirate raids increased to 285 last year from 202 in 1998. However, the number of seafarers killed fell to three last year from 78 in 1998. "This could be due to greater efforts by governments to combat piracy," the report said, citing the recent sentencing to death of 13 pirates in China. Indonesia accounted for 113 of the attacks, almost double its 1998 total of 60. "We believe it was due to the economic situation and political instability…

A British firm is offering shipping companies the services of up to 300 ex-British Army Gurkhas to combat piracy, particularly in Asia. Anglo Marine Overseas Services Ltd. has sent letters to international shipping companies offering "anti-piracy embarkation teams" of four to eight Gurkhas. The letter, one received by Australia's Western Bulk Carriers, states the primary mission of the Gurkhas is to deter piracy, but a "secondary mission is to manage the event should deterrence fail against a determined boarding party". "These men are available at reasonable rates of pay and average 16 years British military experience," said the letter.