Foulness Island Foulness Island Foulness Island () is an island on the east coast of Essex in England, which is separated from the mainland by narrow creeks. In the 2001 census, the usually resident population of the civil parish was 212, living in the settlements of Churchend and Courtsend, at the north end of the island. The population reduced to 151 at the 2011 Census. The island had until recently a general store and post office. The George and Dragon pub in Churchend closed in 2007, while the church closed in May 2010. Foulness Island is predominantly farmland and is protected from
Piracy off the coast of Somalia illegal fishing off Somalia after the 2013 decline in piracy, fishing vessels became targets in a few incidents in 2015. In March two Iranian vessels and in November one Iranian and a Thai vessel were attacked. The tanker "Aris 13", which had been carrying fuel from Djibouti to Mogadishu, was hijacked off the coast of Somalia on 13 March 2017. This was the first reported hijacking of a large commercial vessel in five years. Two skiffs approached the tanker and boarded the vessel off the northern coast of Somalia. Eight Sri Lankan crew members were aboard at the time. After