Piracy's Next Frontier

(Photo: RubyGoes)

While pirate attacks worldwide are down so far this year, Foreign Policy reports that Africa’s blackbeards seem to have shifted their attention to West Africa and Indonesia, where attacks have increased. From a new report from the International Maritime Bureau:

The decline in Somali piracy, however, has been offset by an increase of attacks in the Gulf of Guinea, where 32 incidents, including five hijackings, were reported in 2012, versus 25 in 2011. In Nigeria alone there were 17 reports, compared to six in 2011. Togo reported five incidents including a hijacking, compared to no incidents during the same time last year.

The IMB report emphasized that high levels of violence were also being used against crew members in the Gulf of Guinea. Guns were reported in at least 20 of the 32 incidents. At least one crew member was killed and another later died as a result of an attack.