NCRI – Frustrated by a string of failed hijacking attempts, Somali pirates have turned to a new business model: providing “security” for ships illegally plundering Somalia’s fish stocks which include Iranian ships.
Up to 180 illegal Iranian vessels are fishing Puntland waters, according to estimates by officials in the northern Somali region of Puntland.
Somali pirate gangs in search of new revenue are now providing armed protection for ships illegally fishing Somali waters. Erstwhile pirates are also trafficking in arms, drugs and humans, to according to a report published this month by the UN Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea.
Fishermen in Puntland “have confirmed that the private security teams on board such vessels are normally provided from pools of demobilized Somali pirates and co-ordinated by a ring of pirate leaders and associated businessmen operating in Puntland, Somaliland, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, Yemen and Iran,” the report said.
Source: Associated Press
