KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - A global maritime watchdog says world sea piracy fell to its lowest level in eight years in 2014, but ship hijackings spiked amid rising attacks against small tankers off Southeast Asia's coasts.

The International Maritime Bureau said Wednesday that pirates hijacked 21 ships last year and took 442 crew members hostage, up from 12 vessels and 304 crew members in 2013.

article continues below

It said global pirate attacks dropped 44 per cent from a year earlier to 245. It said Somali pirates were responsible for only 11 attacks, all of which were thwarted, but there were 124 attacks in Southeast Asia.

IMB director Pottengal Mukundan said gangs of armed thieves attacked small tankers in Southeast Asia for their cargoes, specifically for fuel they can sell.