The Dumai Naval Base in Indonesia's Riau province foiled a robbery attempt by pirates on the 'African Halcyon', which was anchored in the Malacca Strait's Dumai waters, on Feb 29, 2024. The pirates jumped into the sea and escaped on a speedboat as soon as the Dumai Naval Base's first fleet quick response team members arrived on the scene. The quick response team departed on a sea rider boat shortly after several crew members of the ship raised alarm when they saw the four pirates trying to climb on board the ship's deck. After thwarting the pirates' attempt to rob the ship, the Indonesian Navy launched a probe into the incident. Several navy personnel also remained on standby near the area where the ship was anchoring.
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TOP DILIGENCE
Four men, armed with gun-like objects, boarded the 'Top Diligence' on Feb 20, 2024, at 03.05 a.m. in the Strait of Malacca off Pulau Iyu Kecil, Indonesia, in pos. 1° 8.29' N 103 ° 29.15' E. Some spare parts were stolen. No injuries were reported. The ship berthed in Zhanjiang on Feb 25.
SWEET MIRI
The Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) 'Beecroft' on March 2, 2024, announced the arrest of the 'Sweet Miri', suspected to be carrying 2000 tons of stolen crude oil. There were 12 Nigerians and one Ghanaian crew members on board. On Feb 25, the vessel was observed to have switched off its AIS to avoid detection. The vessel was arrested 174 nautical miles of the coast of Nigeria, heading to Benin Republic. This necessitated the deployment of the Nigerian Navy Ship 'Aba' to investigate the vessel. Subsequently, it was found to be carrying products suspected to be crude oil. Thereafter, the NNS 'Sokoto' was deployed to double up the search and interdict the vessel. On arrival, it was discovered that it was carrying 2000 tons of suspected product without approval.” The FOC, in line with the directive of Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), opened the ship for other agencies to come and take samples and carry out their own independent investigations to find out the culpability of the vessel, which is owned by a Ghanaian and registered in Ghana by a Ghanaian company. Report with photos: https://onepageafrica.com/2024/03/03/nns-beecroft-arrests-mt-sweet-miri-in-suspected-2m-liters-stolen-crude-oil/
GAS ENDURANCE
While the 'Gas Courage' was anchored off the Kutubdia Anchorage, Bangladesh, in pos. 21° 49.85' N, 091° 43.17' E, on Feb 19, 2024, nine unarmed men boarded the ship and tied up the crew. The perpetrators stole ship's stores.
NATO WARSHIP F221
The 'Hessen', deployed to the Red Sea as part of the EU mission Aspides, has for the first time repelled an attack by the Houthi movement in Yemen. The frigate carried out counterattacks against two enemy targets on Feb 27, 2024. It was the first time on the mission that the German navy used sharp weapons. The ships of the EU mission may only attack militants who attack first. However, they are allowed to fire shots in a preventive manner.