Security – Professional Mariner

19 Apr

MarAd update: Ongoing threats to ships, crews in Mideast

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsLicensing and training, Security, shipping

(WASHINGTON) — Regional conflict, military activity, terrorist attacks and piracy pose significant threats to commercial vessels operating in the following geographic areas: Southern Red Sea, Bab el Mandeb Strait, Gulf of Aden, Indian Ocean, Somali Basin, Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, Strait of Hormuz and Persian Gulf. The U.S. government is continually assessing the maritime security situation in the region…

15 Apr

U.S. strongly condemns Iran’s seizure of containership

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsSecurity, shipping

(WASHINGTON) — The U.S. State Department has strongly condemned Iran’s seizure of a containership, MSC Aries, near the Strait of Hormuz and urged Tehran to immediately release the vessel and its crew, VOA News reported. A State Department representative told VOA’s Persian Service that the vessel, flying the Portuguese flag and owned by Britain, was seized in "international waters," and…

11 Apr

Houthis claim attack on U.S.-flagged boxship in Gulf of Aden

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsSecurity, shipping

(TEHRAN, Iran) — The Yemeni Armed Forces on Wednesday announced that it conducted four operations against merchant and military ships in the Gulf of Aden, including targeting the U.S.-flagged containership Maersk Yorktown. In a televised statement, Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree said that Yemen's Houthi rebels carried out an operation targeting Maersk Yorktown, the boxships MSC Gina and MSC Darwin, and…

18 Mar

MarAd advisory: Shipping threats expand in Mideast

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsMarAd, Security, shipping

The following is a maritime advisory from the U.S. Maritime Administration (MarAd): • Threat type: Threats to commercial vessels • Geographic area: Southern Red Sea, Bab el Mandeb Strait, Gulf of Aden, Indian Ocean, Somali Basin, Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, Strait of Hormuz and Persian Gulf This advisory supersedes and cancels U.S. Maritime Advisory 2024-001, incorporates new advice to…

15 Mar

Houthis vow to target merchant ships in Indian Ocean

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime News, UncategorizedSecurity, shipping

(WASHINGTON) — The Houthi rebel group on Thursday announced that it plans to attack ships in the Indian Ocean as they travel toward the Cape of Good Hope, USNI News reported. Two Houthi spokesmen – Brig. Gen. Yahya Sare’e and Mohammed Abdulsalam – each took to X to post that the Houthis will now target ships linked to Israel traveling…

08 Mar

Biden takes action to strengthen maritime cybersecurity

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsCyberthreats, Security, U.S. Coast Guard

(WASHINGTON) — On Feb. 21, Anne Neuberger, deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technologies, announced that President Biden has issued an executive order to bolster the Department of Homeland Security's authority to directly address maritime cyberthreats. Neuberger observed that America's marine transportation system supports $5.4 trillion of annual economic activity, contributes to the employment of more than 31…

27 Feb

MarAd advisory: Black Sea attacks, collateral damage

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsMarAd, Security, shipping

(WASHINGTON) — Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in late February 2022, commercial vessels have reportedly been struck by projectiles and experienced explosions in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov. There have also been reports of moored and drifting naval mines. • NATO Shipping Center – Risk of collateral damage in the northwestern, western and southwest Black Sea…

22 Feb

U.N. group details toll on trade from Red Sea attacks

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsSecurity, shipping

(GENEVA) — The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has released “Navigating Troubled Waters: Impact to Global Trade of Disruption of Shipping Routes in the Red Sea, the Black Sea and the Panama Canal,” detailing how attacks have severely affected shipping through the Suez Canal, added to existing geopolitical and climate-related challenges, and are reshaping the world's trade…

21 Feb

MarAd alert: Potential port equipment vulnerabilities

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsPorts, Security

(WASHINGTON) — This advisory from the U.S. Maritime Administration (MarAd) seeks to alert maritime stakeholders of potential vulnerabilities to maritime port equipment, networks, operating systems, software and infrastructure. Foreign companies manufacture, install and maintain port equipment that creates vulnerabilities to global maritime infrastructure information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT) systems. In the past few years, the U.S. government has…

05 Feb

New IMO leader addresses Red Sea attacks, emissions

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsIMO, safety, Security, shipping

(LONDON) — Arsenio Dominguez, secretary-general of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), shared the group’s plans and focus areas for the next four years, with the aim of ensuring safer, more secure and environmentally friendly shipping. Speaking at a news conference Thursday at IMO headquarters in London, Dominguez outlined four strategic priorities: IMO’s work to regulate international shipping; its support to…