The suicide boat bombing temporarily closed Iraq’s Al-Basra oil terminal which is responsible for nearly one million barrels per day in oil exports.

The coalition-led Coast Guard approached three suspect vessels near the port which subsequently exploded when boarded by an interception team, killing two US soldiers and injuring four more.

In the Straits of Malacca more than 50 commercial divers from Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the UK were held by pirates and stripped of valuable belongings including cash and lap top computers before being released. The ship is owned by Global Industries which runs a fleet of 20 craft servicing the oil and gas industry.

Security analysts are now concerned that terrorists will join with pirates in an attack on a ship, specifically targeting the sensitive oil and gas industries.

Ships present an easy target for pirates in the South East Asian waters with the region around Indonesia topping the list for number of attacks while 28 occurred in the 900km Strait of Malacca in 2003.