Dubai: From small fishing boats to large aid or cargo vessels, from cruise ships to oil tankers and military vessels, there are few ships that sail the seas today free from the dangers of piracy.

Historically, smaller seas and waters with islands were often pirate havens, but due to colonialism and the excessive use of sea routes, there was a drop in piracy towards the end of the colonial period.

However, in the early 1990s, Somalia's civil war broke out, and with it came a new wave of pirates. Saeed Barre, although an oppressive dictator, had positive international relations with several countries, and was working with private cooperatives to develop the fishing industry within Somalia, which could export fish due to the lack of demand within the country itself. When Barre was thrown out of power, the country fell into a state of anarchy, and foreign aid ceased.

This chaos caused instability socially and economically, and several coastal villages were left with no money and no items to trade. The lack of a proper border patrol meant that fisheries from other countries could expand into Somali waters, leaving local fishermen with plummeting resources.

According to the UN, piracy has turned shipping into a logistical and security nightmare.

Somali pirates have attacked ships 126 times so far this year, successfully taking 27 vessels, with about half of those seizures concentrated in April when pirates avoided the cluster of warships in the Gulf of Aden and started operating hundreds of miles off Somalia's east coast.

"I'd argue that we have made great progress in deterring the pirates, but weather has also played a role," Rear Admiral Peter Hudson, the commander of the European Union's 12-warship Atalanta fleet, said. "I would not be surprised to see more attacks when the monsoon eases, and we'll have to be ready to reallocate our resources."

Somali piracy, however, differs from piracy in South East Asia or the Caribbean. Dr Peter Lehr, an expert in maritime terrorism and professor at St Andrews University, Scotland, said Somali pirates take people hostage for ransom rather than harming them and stealing the ships.

In 2008 alone, cargo worth $150 million (Dh550.5 million) was lost. This does not include the amount required to negotiate and provide adequate security in a world where over 90 per cent of goods are traded by ship. With ransoms reaching a high of $2 million, the shipping business faces the risk of severe losses.

The international community is on the trail of piracy with a vengeance. However, Lehr feels the problem should be tackled locally.

"It should be up to local states in the region rather than the West. Countries like Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Yemen and Oman should get involved, as they have the financial resources as well as the naval resources," he said.

"This will also stop organisations like Al Qaida from saying this is yet another Western crusade against Islam."

- With inputs from Bloomberg