Wednesday 15 July 2009

Piracy cost Yemen US$ 350 million


By Nasser Arrabyee 15/07/2009

The piracy acts in the Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea has cost Yemen US$ 350 million, said an official report Wednesday.

About US$ 200 million was the estimated losses of the fishermen who stopped working in the Yemeni coasts because of the piracy, the report said.

The remaining US$ 150 million was spent by the government on developing the recently-established coastguards' authority and purchases of the boats, added the report which was published by the official media.

The government says it also bears the burdens of receiving about 700,000 Somali immigrants.

From January to May 2009, a total of 126 piracy incidents took place off the Somali coasts and Arabian Sea.

In those incidents, 29 ships were kidnapped, and 472 sailors were taken as hostages. From late 2008 until now, about 40 Somali pirates were arrested, some of them by international forces that handed them over to the Yemeni authorities. 20 of them were already put on trial last months.

In 2008, a total of 24 ships were kidnapped and 815 sailors were taken as hostages in 111 piracy incidents.
The first piracy incident in Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea was in 1995. The piracy increased in 2004- 2006 and it increased even more in 2007.

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