Malaysian ship carrying diesel hijacked

The hijacked ship Vier Harmoni, has been located in the waters off Batam in Indonesia, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) said in a statement.

The ship, which sailed from the Tanjung Pelepas port in Malaysia on Monday, was carrying diesel with an estimated value of 1.57 million ringgit ($392,795).

The MMEA said they have yet to confirm the identity of the hijackers.

Report on Piracy

A recent recent report of the International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said that piracy and armed robbery at sea has fallen to its lowest levels since 1995, despite a surge in kidnappings off West Africa.

IMB’s global piracy report shows 98 incidents in the first half of 2016, compared with 134 for the same period in 2015. When piracy was at its highest, in 2010 and 2003, IMB recorded 445 attacks a year.

In the first half of 2016, IMB recorded 72 vessels boarded, five hijackings, and a further 12 attempted attacks. Nine ships were fired upon. Sixty-four crew were taken hostage onboard, down from 250 in the same period last year.

Despite global improvements, kidnappings are on the rise, with 44 crew captured for ransom in 2016, 24 of them in Nigeria, up from 10 in the first half of 2015.