Piracy Attacks off the Horn of Africa
Motives, Tactics, and International Response
Several groups of pirates currently operate in Somali waters, according to reports from the United Nations Secretary General and an experts group convened by the Secretary General’s Special Representative for Somalia in November 2008. Organized predominantly along clan lines and based in distinct, remote port towns, the groups have varying capabilities and patterns of operation, making generalized responses more difficult. The Secretary General has warned that some of the pirate groups “now rival established Somali authorities in terms of their military capabilities and resource bases.” Pirate groups have operated from these remote communities, each heavily dependent on fishing, since the…
