Fighting Pirates at Sea

August 3, 2009

Isaac Azar, the general director of Spike International based inGranot, Israel, is running a company that teaches and trains ships' crews how to think like pirates. It's not uncommon for Israeli security guards to be operating under a double identity on board, he says. When danger calls, the Israeli guards spring into action, protecting the boat and its passengers.

The story with Israelis protecting ships at sea goes back already 30 years, says Azar, whose company was founded in 1978 by past Israeli Navy commander Micha Ram. “We kept security forces on ships that were passing through the Gulf of Aden [between Somalia and Yemen], with rifles and everything,” he tells ISRAEL21c. “Today, normally we do it in a way that nobody knows there are guards on the ship, and they act on standby, like a lifeguard at the swimming pool.” This is because pirates are getting smarter all the time.

“If they know a ship is protected, they can count how many guards are there to plan their attack. If they don't know who the guards are, they will think twice. Pirates have money now. They can talk to the captain of a ship on a radio. It's not like pirates of the movies. And not like before when they would climb on the boat with a knife between their teeth. Now they are going near the ship with an RPG rocket and calling the captain to stop the ship. If the captain doesn't stop, they start shooting over the bridge.”

Today, the most dangerous shipping lanes are in West Africa off Nigeria, the Malacca Straits in Southeast Asia, and off the coasts of Somalia and Yemen. About 400 pirate attacks have happened at sea over the last year.  According to reports, Israeli security guards are in high demand, due to experience, military training, and reputation. They are often called on to be team leaders on large cruise lines.

Excerpts from an article by Karin Kloosterman, israel21c.org

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