There were 64 reported incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships, comprising 50 actual incidents and 14 attempted incidents in Asia during the first nine months of 2018, up from 62 in the same period last year, according to the latest ReCAAP report.
Of the 64 incidents, three were incidents of piracy and 61 were incidents of armed robbery against ships.
However, the number of actual incidents reported during January-September 2018 was the lowest in 10 years.
Of the 50 actual incidents reported during January-September 2018, only one was a CAT 1 incident (the highest level); five were CAT 2 incidents, 10 were CAT 3 incidents and 34 were CAT 4 incidents.
There was one actual incident and one attempted incident of abduction of crew for ransom in the Sulu-Celebes Seas and waters off Eastern Sabah, compared to seven incidents (comprising three actual incidents and four attempted incidents) reported during the same period in 2017.
Other areas of concern are ports and anchorages in Chittagong, Bangladesh and off Samarinda in East Kalimantan, Indonesia; as well as on board ships while underway in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore.