Pirates expand area for attacks, target oil tankers from Gulf states
ABU DHABI — Somali pirates have begun to target oil tankers from the
Gulf states and have increased the range for attacks to the Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea and in the Indian Ocean.
The International Maritime Bureau has reported that Somali pirates were
seeking to capture oil tankers from the Persian Gulf states.
In
December 2009, the bureau said, Somali pirates attacked a Kuwaiti oil tanker
with rocket-propelled grenades in the Red Sea on Dec. 30, Middle East Newsline reported.
"Fortunately, the tanker managed to escape the pirates," bureau director
Noel Choong said.
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"Pirates are expanding their areas of attack. They are now
operating in the Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea and in the Indian Ocean."
On Dec. 25, Somali pirates were reported to have
captured a Yemeni vessel, MV Socotra-1.
The state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corp. denied any attack on its tankers.
But Choong warned that Somali pirates would try again to seize oil tankers
leaving GCC states.