KUALA LUMPUR, Aug. 26 -- Piracy and armed robbery cases in the Strait of Malacca and the Singapore Strait have reportedly surged this year, with incidents nearly quadrupling from 2024.

Citing data from the ReCAAP Information Sharing Centre (ISC), British daily The Guardian reported that 80 incidents were recorded between January and June 2025, compared with 21 in the same period last year.

The waterways, which link the Indian Ocean to the Pacific via the South China Sea, carry about 90,000 merchant vessels and roughly 60 per cent of global maritime trade annually, according to the National Bureau of Asian Research.

Most incidents were described as opportunistic and non-violent, with no cases classed at the most serious level involving ...