A total of 11 incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships were reported in Asia in May 2020. Of the 11 incidents, one was a piracy incident and 10 were incidents of armed robbery against ships.

There was no report of abduction of crew in the Sulu-Celebes Seas and waters off Eastern Sabah, Malaysia in May 2020; however, the abduction of crew for ransom remains a serious concern as demonstrated by the Warning issued by ReCAAP ISC on 23 May that a group of about five Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) members armed with assorted firearms was planning to conduct abduction of crew activities in undisclosed areas off Sabah

ReCAAP ISC is also concerned about the continued occurrence of incidents onboard ships while underway in the Singapore Strait; three incidents were reported in May 2020

Representation Image – Credits: IMO Collection/flikr.com

With these, a total of 15 incidents were reported in the Singapore Strait during Jan-May 2020 comprising 12 incidents occurred in the eastbound lane of the Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS), one incident in the westbound lane of the TSS, one incident just outside (south) of the TSS and one incident in the precautionary area