NATO Piracy Update
During the reporting period of 04 to 10 July 2012 there have been no piracy incidents in the region. Activity in recent weeks shows that pirate activity can still take place during the South-West Monsoon and that pirates are operating closer to shore to avoid severe conditions further out to sea. PAGs (Pirate Attack Groups) will likely continue to focus their efforts in the Northern Arabian Sea (NAS), Gulf of Oman (GOO) as well as in the Gulf of Aden (GOA), Southern Red Sea (SRS), and coastal waters.
There have been a number of incidents recently reported to Counter Piracy organisations in the High Risk Area involving small craft approaches to Merchant Vessels. Although these incidents may appear to be piracy related, the majority are not, and have been assessed as non-piracy related activity common to the pattern of life in the area. This can include fishing, small vessel trade, smuggling and other local traffic.
Please note that, if we assess an approach or incident to be piracy, then we will issue relevant warnings and alerts, keeping the merchant shipping community fully informed at all times.
During the South-West monsoon between June and September, sea conditions in much of the High Risk Area (HRA) are expected to be largely unfavourable to small boats such as skiffs. These may move to operate in less-exposed or coastal areas such as the Gulf of Aden or Bab-al-Mandeb.
Please remain vigilant at all times.
If an incident occurs, Masters are advised to report immediately to UKMTO via telephone at 
+971 50 55 23215, providing as much information as possible about the incident. This will ensure information is quickly passed to shipping in the area.
If Masters are able to take pictures and/or video of the suspicious activity safely, please provide these via email to UKMTO atukmto@eim.ae, NATO Shipping Centre (NSC) at info@shipping.nato.int or the Maritime Security Centre Horn of Africa (MSCHOA) at postmaster@mschoa.org. This information will be used by Counter Piracy forces to help combat piracy. Pictures supplied from a recent attack on a merchant vessel led to the rapid release of a pirated dhow.
Southern Red Sea (SRS)/Bab Al Mandeb (BAM) / Gulf of Aden (GOA)/Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC)
There have been no significant changes over the past week.
Fishing activity is expected to continue at a high level in this area during the Southwest monsoon season. Masters are reminded to remain vigilant in order distinguish between fishing vessels and potential pirates.
Arabian Sea (AS)/Greater Somali Basin (SB)/Gulf of Oman (GOO)/Mozambique Channel (MC)
There have been no significant changes over the past week.
NSC Newsletter
The NSC Newsletter for July is now available on the NSC website:
http://www.shipping.nato.int/Documents/Newsletter%20July%202012.pdf
