Gulf of Aden most dangerous waters in the world

It's official. The waters off the coast of Somalia are the most dangerous in the world, especially the Gulf of Aden. Incidently, the busiest shipping lanes are just off the coast of Somalia as well. A lot of the world's oil travels through the Gulf of Aden.

We've noted here before that the pirates operating in the Gulf of Aden are connected to al Qaida. Maybe al Qaida is trying to disrupt oil shipments to the West to cripple our economy. During the early years of the Iraqi war, al Qaida would regularily blow up oil pipelines for the same reasons.

Voice of America

The London-based International Maritime Bureau, or IMB, an organization that tracks crimes on the high seas, says the waters off Somalia - including the Gulf of Aden - are the most dangerous in the world for international shipping.

IMB Director Puttengal Mukundan says most pirate attacks occur in that region.

"In Somalia, at the end of the first three quarters [of this year], we had 63 incidents reported, which was about a third of the total attacks around the world," Mukundan said. "And of those 63 incidents, 26 vessels were hijacked by the pirates and 537 crew members were taken hostage."

....

"We've had tankers, bulk carriers, general cargo ships," Mukundan said. "The biggest vessel, which has been taken, is a 74,000-ton bulk carrier, fully laden with coal. And so it gives an idea of the range and scale of these attacks."