By Jan Stockbruegger Last year in March 2010 we published a blog titled “Gunmen, Fish and Puntland: the Professionalization of Piracy?“ outlining the findings of the UN Monitoring Group on Somali piracy (Report of the UN Monitoring Group on Somalia, … Read more →
In the past weeks, the counter-piracy efforts off the coast of Somalia appeared to be finally paying off. In well coordinated operations in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean several pirate gangs were disrupted and their mother-ships destroyed … Read more →
A new report of the “Report of the Monitoring Group on Somalia pursuant to Security Council resolution 1853” was published on March 10th. According to the report, Pirates transnationalize and establish political contacts beyond the immediate region. The report re-emphasizes that the “coast guard”-argument is implausible, although it continues to be raised in international news coverage. Earlier information suggests that pirates are organized in fairly small and loose gangs with flat hierarchical structures. This, however, the report suggests might be changing. The government of Puntland appears to be even more entangled in the piracy operations than already known. Read more →