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Pirates Attack U.N. Ships Near Indonesia
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Pirates attacked two U.N.-chartered ships carrying construction materials off the Indonesian coast in the Strait of Malacca, a maritime watchdog said Tuesday, raising fears about a resurgence of piracy in one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.
At the moment we don't know if these are isolated cases or the start of attacks again in the Malacca straits," Choong said. "We are still monitoring. But we urge ships to keep a strict piracy watch."
According to the IMB, there were no pirate attacks in the strait in the first three months of 2006, but Sunday's attack raised to five the number of incidents reported since April.
Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia officially began coordinated patrols in the 550-mile strait in July 2004 after prodding from Washington, which said terrorists could link up with pirates already established in the narrow waterway to blow up an oil tanker or use it as a floating bomb.
Each year, more than 50,000 ships carrying half the world's oil and a third of its commerce use the route bordered by Malaysia and Singapore on one side and Indonesia's Sumatra on the other.