Prior to the attack on 29 November in the Arabian Sea (1510N 05636E), pictures were taken of the dhow mother ship and skiff involved, by the crew of the vessel. The NATO Shipping Centre thanks the master for providing the pictures, which will be used to assist in tracking the mother ship.  A description of the mother ship is as follows:

The hull is orange-brown with light blue stripes. No name was visible and no flag was seen. The dhow has a wooden main deck, the mast house is orange-brown in colour, bulwark is light blue in colour, the monkey island has wooden hand rails and is white in colour, the superstructure is a buff colour, and the navigational bridge bulk head is light blue. There were two skiffs above the mast house.

The skiff involved in the attack was all white and had a speed of 15-20 knots or more.

A second Dhow mother ship is also operating in the Arabian Sea. This is a Yemani type dhow and it is towing a skiff. The dhow is white with blue stripes and has a lot of rust marks on the hull.

Masters are advised to maintain a vigilant look out when transiting this area and are requested to immediately report any sighting of the two dhows described above to the NATO Shipping Centre or UKMTO.

The Bab Al Mandeb (BAM), Southern Red Sea (SRS), Gulf of Aden (GOA) and Arabian Sea (AS) remain areas of concern. Small vessels continue to operate in the GOA. Fishing is ongoing in the far western part of the GOA. Vessels can expect to see groups of skiffs in this area carrying out fishing related activities. Pirates may take advantage of the situation and hide among the vessels.

If any incident occurs, Masters are requested to report immediately to UKMTO via telephone and provide the details of the incident. This will ensure the information is quickly provided to other ships in the area for their awareness and vigilance.

If Merchant Masters are safely able to take photographs during an attack and provide these photos as well as the details of the situation to the NATO Shipping Centre and UKMTO it would be greatly appreciated. This information will be used to assist the Counter Piracy forces’ ability in combating piracy activities.