Maritime Piracy Beetwen the Act of Self-defense and Criminal Act

Abstract

This study tries to treat the phenomenon of maritime piracy considered in all international and national legislations as a criminal act while approaching it the act of self-defense which takes a similar simulance in several cases to the activities of maritime piracy. This makes it difficult to distinguish one act to the other in the case where those who commit the act of maritime piracy claim that they are merely defending their national interests. This study tries to touch the part or the act of maritime piracy which is distinguished from the act of self-defense which takes the sea as a sphere of activity to carry out their act.