Pirate attacks in Horn of Africa declining: report

There's been a sharp decline in pirate attacks in the waters surrounding the Horn of Africa this year, the US Navy has found, the New York Times reported.

According to the data, which was released last week, there have only been 46 pirate attacks in the area this year, the Times reported. There were 222 attacks in all of last year, and 239 in 2010.

The Times reports that the decrease in attacks comes from "increased security measures taken by commercial vessels" and through "sustained antipiracy patrols by the navies of more than a dozen nations, including the United States." However, Navy officers aren't declaring a victory against piracy in the area yet.

Piracy is still a lucrative business, especially given the region's propensity for political turmoil, and Vice Adm. Mark I Fox, the Navy's deputy chief for operations, plans and strategy, says that they're watching carefully.  

“The pirates are very adaptable, and they are very flexible,” said Fox to the Times. 

According to the International Maritime Bureau's Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships 2011 Report, 53 percent of the world's pirate attacks were committed by Somali pirates in the waters around the Horn of Africa. However, GlobalPost reported that piracy has been stepping up its game in West Africa's Gulf of Guinea, where criminal gangs, steeped in Nigeria's violent and organized criminal culture, are seizing oil tankers, then transferring crude on the black market.

On Tuesday, pirates in the Gulf of Guinea seized a Greek-owned oil tanker off the coast of Togo. The BBC reported that there have been six ships seized in West Africa this year so far.

According to the US Energy Information Administration, the Gulf of Guinea produces an estimated 3 million barrels of oil per day, most of which come from Nigeria, the world's 8th largest oil exporter.

Check out this infographic that details pirate attacks off the waters of Africa:
 

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