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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| A warning for the Northern Arabian/Persian Gulf |
| 2006-06-18 |
| H/T Eagle1 From MARITIME LIAISON OFFICE (MARLO) BAHRAIN MARLO Advisory Bulletin 04-06 15 June 2006 The following information is intended to keep you informed of ongoing maritime activity that may affect your shipping operations and planning. Government vessels of every nation state may query commercial vessels requesting information concerning the vesselÂ’s identification and the activity in which it is engaged. However, we have received an increasing number of reports from commercial vessels, including fishing vessels, of incidents of harassment by small craft. These incidents are occurring in the Northern Persian Gulf. The small craft have an official look about them and some are clearly armed. Persons on board the small craft, representing themselves as Iranian authorities, have coerced the operators of the commercial vessels to allow them to board. Many of these boarding have resulted in the mental and physical abuse of the master and/or crew of the commercial vessel, up to and including extortion and armed robbery of ShipÂ’s equipment; Cargo; Personnel property; and Cash. Although no deaths have been reported, the approaching onset of an active fishing season raises the possibility of more incidents of this nature. While we do not in any way encourage physical resistance to an armed assault, we do encourage vessel owners and operators to consider carefully the areas in which they operate or transit. And, as always, we strongly encourage you to notify the Piracy Reporting Center (PRC) of the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) immediately upon a suspected or actual attack via radio, satellite phone, or any other means available. |
| Posted by:Sherry |
| #2 There's always that 10% who didn't get the word... |
| Posted by: PBMcL 2006-06-18 23:10 |
| #1 I thought the Persian Gulf was renamed to the Gulf of Rumsfeld. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2006-06-18 17:19 |