JAKARTA, 29 July 2004 - Pirates armed with automatic weapons opened fire on a gas tanker moored at an Indonesian port before boarding the craft and stealing equipment, a maritime crime watchdog reported Wednesday. No one was injured in the attack Monday on the tanker moored at Anyer port on the western tip of Java island, the International Maritime Bureau reported. The vessel was carrying liquefied petroleum gas.
The attack underscores the security concerns surrounding Indonesia's busy seas. Foreign governments have warned international terrorists might hijack or blow up tankers in its waters to hurt world trade. The maritime bureau, which tracks pirate attacks around the world, said five gunmen fired several shots at the tanker before stealing unspecified equipment. It gave no more details. Police in Anyer said they had received no report on the incident.
Victims of crime in Indonesia often choose not to inform the police, who normally demand money to investigate incidents and are regularly accused of extortion and criminal activity themselves. Indonesia suffered 50 pirate attacks in the first half of this year, more than any other country, the bureau said in a report released Monday.
That figure did not include another 20 attacks in the Straits of Malacca, which straddle Indonesia's Sumatra island and peninsular Malaysia. Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore last week began their first coordinated naval patrols to deter piracy and terrorism in the straits, which 50,000 ships travel through every year.
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