Sea Piracy Worldwide Falls To Lowest Level Since 2008

Sea piracy worldwide fell to its lowest level since 2008 over the first nine months of this year as navies and shipping companies cracked down on attacks off the coast of Somalia, an international maritime watchdog said Monday.

The International Maritime Bureau said 233 attacks were recorded worldwide in the first nine months of this year, down from 352 in the same period last year. The bureau's piracy reporting arm, which is based in Kuala Lumpur, said 24 vessels were hijacked worldwide between January and September 2012, with 458 crew members taken hostage and six killed.

The numbers fell because attacks off Somalia's coast plummeted during that same period, from 199 last year to 70 this year. The bureau said only one Somali attack was reported in the entire third quarter of 2012.

Piracy soared in 2009 because of attacks off largely lawless Somalia, where pirates became more daring and desperate. Since then, pirates have been deterred by international navies, and by ships taking their own security measures, such as hiring armed guards.

- AP