U.S. destroyer pursues pirates

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UN declares open season on pirates...

Navies to tackle Somali pirates
Monday, 2 June 2008 - The vote means nations will be able to send warships to tackle pirates

The UN Security Council has unanimously voted to allow countries to send warships into Somalia's territorial waters to tackle pirates. The resolution permits countries that have the agreement of Somalia's interim government to use any means to repress acts of piracy for the next six months.

Twenty-six ships have been attacked by pirates in the waters in the past year.

The vote came as the UN launched peace talks with factions involved in Somalia's conflict. The Islamist opposition said face-to-face talks would not happen at the meeting in neighbouring Djibouti until the government set a timetable for the withdrawal of Ethiopian troops.

Rife piracy

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Pirates muckin' up relief aid to Somalia...

Pirates threaten aid to Somalia
June 26, 2008 - SOMALIA faces a serious food crisis if no nation steps forward with naval ships to escort relief shipments through pirate-infested waters, the UN World Food Program (WFP) has said.

A Dutch frigate now is in its last weeks shepherding two WFP-chartered vessels which shuttle between the Kenyan port of Mombasa to Somalia. where the United Nations warns 3.5 million will need food relief by year's end. "We need a foreign navy to take over the escort system before mid-July when we hope to send a ship from Durban, South Africa loaded with WFP food to Mogadishu," WFP spokesman Peter Smerdon said.

"WFP has still not recieved any confirmed offer from any foreign navy, but we have been in contact with many governments and pray that someone will step foward." Somalia's waters are among the most pirate-infested in the world - leading the UN Security Council earlier this month to authorise foreign warships to enter Somali waters to combat piracy and armed robbery at sea.

The WFP's appeal comes as it seeks to double the amount of food it ships to Somalia with a view to feeding 2.3 million people a month, Mr Smerdon said. Since November last year, French and Danish frigates have escorted WFP shipments to Somalia, which has been gripped by lawlessness since the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.

Aid groups have scaled down operations in the face of growing insecurity, largely blamed on Islamist militants who have waged a guerrilla war since their ouster by Somali and Ethiopian forces in early 2007. Mr Smerdon said: "If humanitarian assistance cannot reach Somalia because of piracy, we fear that we could see scenes similar to the 1992-1993 famine in Somalia that cost hundreds of thousands of lives."

Pirates threaten aid to Somalia | NEWS.com.au

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Pirates in the Gulf of Aden...

Pirates Seize Malaysian Tanker Off Somalia's Coast
August 20, 2008 - Pirates Seize Malaysian Tanker With 39 Crew Off Somalia Coast; Warship in Hot Pursuit

Armed pirates seized a Malaysian palm oil tanker with 39 crew off the coast of Somalia — the fourth hijacking in a month, a global maritime watchdog said Wednesday. Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center in Kuala Lumpur, said the center received a distress signal late Tuesday about the raid on the MT Bunga Melati Dua and immediately notified Western naval ships patrolling the area. An international terrorism task force dispatched a warship to intercept the tanker, which was heading toward Somalia territorial waters, he said. "We have had no communication with the vessel so far. The distress call was relayed through another ship but the tanker has been confirmed seized by pirates," Choong said.

Once the ship enters Somali waters, Choong said pirates were likely to demand ransom for the release of the vessel and the crew, he said. "This is the fourth hijacking in a month ... We call upon the U.N. and the international community to take immediate steps to stop the worsening situation," he said. He declined to give further details, citing concern for the crew's security. The warship was from a multinational naval task force set up to stop terrorism at sea. The naval force includes the United States, France, Germany, Pakistan, Britain and Canada, which currently holds the rotating command. It was unclear what country was involved in Wednesday's chase.

The Gulf of Aden, where many of the attacks take place, connects the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, forming one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. Choong said pirates seized a Japanese-owned cargo ship with 20 Filipino sailors on July 20 in the Gulf. A Nigerian vessel was later hijacked, followed by a Thai cargo ship with 28 crew members earlier this month. Negotiations were ongoing in all cases after pirates demanded ransom for the release of the crew, he said.

More ABC News: Pirates Hijack Tanker on Somali Coast

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Better than buried treasure...

Piracy ransoms funding Somalia insurgency
Sun Aug 24, 2008 - An explosion of piracy this month off the coast of Somalia is funding a growing insurgency onshore as the hijackers funnel hefty ransom payments to Islamist rebels, a maritime official said on Sunday.

A record four ships were seized in 48 hours last week off the anarchic Horn of Africa nation, meaning Somali pirates are currently holding hostage four cargo vessels, two tankers and a tug boat, along with about 130 crew members. The spike in attacks at sea has coincided with a rise in assaults on land by radical al-Shabaab insurgents, including the capture on Friday of Somalia's strategic southern port Kismayu.

The United States say al-Shabaab is a terrorist group with close ties to al Qaeda. Experts say some of the businessmen and warlords who command the pirates are also funding the rebels. "The entire Somali coastline is now under control of the Islamists," Andrew Mwangura, head of the East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme, told Reuters in an interview.

"According to our information, the money they make from piracy and ransoms goes to support al-Shabaab activities onshore." Piracy has been rife off Somalia since warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991. Experts say at least 30 ships have been hijacked off the coast so far this year -- and the attacks have hit unprecedented levels this month.

More Piracy ransoms funding Somalia insurgency | Special Coverage | Reuters

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Argh - alright, who was the idiot that hijacked a Russian ship?

Pirates Seize Another Ship Off Somalia
Sep. 27, 2008 - Pirates Seize Greek Tanker Off Somalia After Taking Ukrainian Ship Laden With Tanks

Pirates have seized a Greek chemical tanker with a crew of 19 off Somalia's coast, days after hijacking a Ukrainian cargo ship loaded with tanks, an international anti-piracy group said Saturday. A man claiming to be spokesman of the pirates holding the Ukrainian ship said the hijackers want $35 million to release the vessel. But there was no way to immediately verify his claim that he represented the pirates. The Greek tanker, carrying refined petroleum from Europe to the Middle East, was ambushed Friday in the Gulf of Aden, said Noel Choong, who heads the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center based in Malaysia. He said pirates chased and fired at the ship before boarding it.

The incident was the latest in a string of audacious ship hijackings in waters off the war-torn African country. On Thursday, pirates seized the Ukrainian ship Faina en route to Kenya with 33 Russian-built T-72 tanks and a substantial quantity of ammunition and spare parts. Russia's navy said Friday it had dispatched a warship to the area, and the United States said U.S naval ships were monitoring the situation. A man who spoke to the Associated Press in Somalia by telephone and claimed to be a spokesman for the pirates said they were seeking a ransom.

"We want the Kenyan government to negotiate with us about a $35 million ransom we want for the release of the ship and the cargo without any other intervention," said the man, who identified himself as Ali Yare Abdulkadir. "If not, we will do what we can and off load the small arms and take them away." Abdulkadir, who local residents in the northeastern Somali region of Puntland said represented the pirates, declined to reveal his whereabouts. He said the ship is somewhere along Somalia's northeastern coast and warned against any military action to liberate it. "Any one who tries it will be responsible for the consequences," Abdulkadir said. A Russian Web site posted on Saturday what it said was an audio recording of a telephone conversation the Ukrainian ship's first mate. He said the hijackers are seeking a ransom and have anchored close to the Somali shore.

More http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/...n4482501.shtml

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Russian Warships Head To Intercept Pirates
Sept. 26, 2008 - Ukranian Vessel Carrying 33 Battle Tank Hijacked Off Horn Of Africa

A Russian warship on Friday rushed to intercept a Ukrainian vessel carrying 33 battle tanks and a hoard of ammunition that was seized by pirates off the Horn of Africa - a bold hijacking that again heightened fears about surging piracy and high-seas terrorism. A U.S. warship is tracking the vessel but there has been no decision about intercepting it, U.S. Defense Department officials said. "I think we're looking at the full range of options here," Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said.

It was unclear whether the pirates who seized the 530-foot-long cargo ship Faina on Thursday knew what it carried. Still, analysts said it would be extremely difficult to sell such high-profile weaponry like Russian tanks. The hijacking, with worldwide pirate attacks surging this year, could help rally stronger international support behind France, which has pushed aggressively for decisive action against Somali pirates.

Russian navy spokesman Capt. Igor Dygalo told The Associated Press that the missile frigate Neustrashimy left the Baltic Sea port of Baltiisk a day before the hijacking to cooperate with other unspecified countries in anti-piracy efforts. But he said the ship was then ordered directly to the Somalia coast after Thursday's attack. According to the British-based Jane's Information Group, the Neustrashimy is armed with surface-to-air missiles, 100 mm guns and anti-submarine torpedoes.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Yury Yekhanurov, meanwhile, said the hijacked vessel Faina was carrying 33 Russian-built T-72 tanks and a substantial quantity of ammunition and spare parts. He said the tanks were sold to Kenya in accordance with international law. Ukrainian officials and an anti-piracy watchdog said 21 crew members were aboard the seized ship, including three Russians. Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko ordered unspecified measures to free the crew, but it was unclear whether any of the former Soviet republic's naval vessels had been dispatched.

More Russian Warships Head To Intercept Pirates, Ukranian Vessel Carrying 33 Battle Tank Hijacked Off Horn Of Africa - CBS News

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Somalis desperate for help against pirates...

Pirates face down U.S. warships, 'copters
October 1, 2008 -- Somali pirates who hijacked ship carrying weapons stare down U.S. warships; Ship seized in Indian Ocean is carrying tanks and other heavy weapons; Spokesman for pirates denies report of shootout, says celebrating Eid al-Fitr; Pirates are demanding $20 million ransom; negotiations are continuing

Somali pirates who hijacked a ship laden with tanks and heavy weapons stared down U.S. warships and helicopters again Wednesday, making no move to withdraw their $20 million ransom demand or give up after a seven-day standoff in the Indian Ocean. The hijacking of the Ukrainian cargo ship MV Faina -- carrying 33 Soviet-made T-72 tanks, rifles, and heavy weapons that U.S. defense officials have said included rocket launchers -- was the highest-profile act of piracy in the dangerous waters off Somalia this year.

The U.S. Navy says it wants to keep the arms out of the hands of militants linked to al Qaeda in impoverished Somalia, a key battleground in the war on terrorism. To that end, it has surrounded the Faina, anchored off the central Somali town of Hobyo, with half a dozen ships, including USS guided missile destroyer USS Howard. An official in Washington, speaking on condition of anonymity, said disagreements among the pirates led to a shootout Monday night that U.S. officials believe killed three pirates. He would not elaborate how U.S. officials knew this information, but the USS Howard, which is within 10 miles of the hijacked ship, has sophisticated weapons and monitoring equipment.

A spokesman for the pirates denied the shootout report, saying the pirates were celebrating the Islamic holiday that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan. "We are happy on the ship and we are celebrating (Eid al-Fitr)," spokesman Sugule Ali told The Associated Press by satellite telephone Tuesday. "Nothing has changed." "We didn't dispute over a single thing, let alone have a shootout," Ali said.

More Pirates face down U.S. warships, 'copters - CNN.com

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Somalia asks Russia for help with pirates
October 1, 2008 -- Somalia wants Russian warships to intervene; Russia rules out using force; Pirates captured Ukrainian MV Faina, loaded with weapons, off Somalia's coast; Officials fear weapons will get into terrorists' hands; Ships from 10 countries, including U.S., in region; Somalia fed up with inaction

The Somali government has asked Russia to intervene against pirates who have seized a Ukrainian cargo ship, the Somali ambassador to Russia said Wednesday. But the Russian navy issued a statement later in the day saying it had no intention of using force against the pirates, the Russian news agency Interfax reported. "The questions of freeing the ships and crew are being dealt with in line with the corresponding international practices," Interfax quoted Navy spokesman Igor Dygalo as saying. "For understandable reasons, the use of force would be an extreme measure because it could threaten the life of the international crew of the ship."

The pirates took over the MV Faina last week off the coast of Somalia and are demanding a $20 million ransom for the ship's cargo of 33 Soviet-made T-72 tanks, tank artillery shells, grenade launchers and small arms. The ship is anchored within Somalia's 12-mile territorial limit. "The government and the president of Somalia are allowing the Russian naval ships to enter our waters, and fight against pirates both in the sea and on the land, that is, if they would have to chase them," Amb. Mohamed Handule said at a news conference in Moscow.

"We think that this issue of piracy has exceeded all limits. It is very dangerous that pirates are now laying their hands on arms -- not just for Somalia, not only for the navigating, but for the entire region in general," he added. "Right now, pirates are controlling the sea in this area, but just imagine if they get control of the land too." The announcement raised concern among some officials monitoring the situation.

More Somalia asks Russia for help with pirates - CNN.com

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Habib forgets to bring the long ladder...

Somalia: Four pirate attacks in 24 hours
4 Oct.`08 - There have been four failed pirate attacks in the last 24 hours off Somalia; Attacks come despite presence of six American warships; Eight European countries have offered to help form an anti-piracy force

There have been four failed pirate attacks in the last 24 hours off the lawless Somali coast despite the presence of six American warships guarding a hijacked ship full of weapons, a U.S. Navy spokeswoman said Saturday. Navy Cmdr. Jane Campbell, from the 5th Fleet in Bahrain, says three attacks were averted because crew members escaped at high speed. Another attack was foiled because the pirates were badly prepared: The ladder they had brought to climb on to the ship was too short.

The Navy says three of the attacks were in the heavily patrolled corridor within the Gulf of Aden. The location of another was not precisely known but was somewhere off the Somali coast. Last week's attack on a Ukrainian ship laden with 33 Soviet-designed tanks and weapons has focused international attention on piracy in Somalia. American officials have expressed fears the weapons onboard the MV Faina could fall into the hands of Somalia's al Qaeda-linked Islamic insurgency.

Eight European countries have offered to help form an anti-piracy force. On Friday, Russia called for greater efforts to protect the Gulf of Aden waters, one of the world's most important shipping lanes. There have been nearly 70 pirate attacks this year and some 26 ships successfully hijacked.

Source

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Can NATO do the job?

Will NATO Navies Stop Somali Pirates?
Friday, Oct. 24, 2008 - France notched an important victory against the pirates who plague commercial shipping off the Horn of Africa, when it arrested nine of them at sea during a raid near the Gulf of Aden.

But the roots of Somalia's piracy problem lie in the breakdown of state authority on land, which is why many questioned just how effective the French Naval action — or the NATO patrols due to begin in the coming days — will be in curbing the pirates. The nine nabbed by the French, after all, were stripped of their weapons and then handed over to the very Somali authorities who have failed to keep them under control in the first place. "After obtaining assurances from the local officials in Somalia that they'd be put on trial and that their human rights would be respected, we delivered them to the custody of local authorities," said French Defense Ministry spokesman General Christian Baptiste. "This operation is sending a message to pirates in the region that continuing their activity will be getting more dangerous and expensive for them."

Perhaps, but only if the authorities in the self-declared autonomous region of Puntland keep their end of the deal. And a look at the track record on controlling piracy of the authorities in Puntland and elsewhere in Somalia does little to inspire confidence. The pirates operate their increasingly lucrative industry with impunity from a number of fishing villages along the Puntland coast, where they currently hold at least 12 vessels, and more than 200 of their crew members, awaiting ransom payments. The best known of these is the Ukrainian freighter MV Faina, and its cargo of tanks and other weapons, hijacked almost a month ago, although some 73 vessels have been captured this year netting the pirates as much as $30 million in ransom payments.

Somalia has been a failed state since its degeneration into clan warfare in the 1990s following the death of the dictator of General Mohammed Siad Barre. Today, it is ruled by a fragile coalition of warlords kept in place by the Ethiopian army, which invaded with U.S. backing to drove out an Islamist authority that had, ironically, managed to tamp down piracy, but was also harboring wanted al-Qaeda figures. And some of the warlords in the current government are accused by international observers of being the real commanders of Puntland's half-dozen main pirate groups. "Most of [the pirates] are linked to warlords," Andrew Mwangura, head of the Kenya-based Seafarers' Assistance Program, told reporters last April. "And the warlords are linked to the [government], all the way to the top."

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Oh brother...

Pirates protected from EU task force by human rights
01 Nov 2008 - A new EU naval task force will be unable to take tough action against Somali pirates because it must respect their human rights, its commander has admitted.

The pirates of old at least knew where they stood if captured - they would be jailed and hung, or possibly made to walk the plank. But those policing the high seas today have no such potent sanctions to impose on 21st century buccanneers, as the human rights of the successors to Blackbeard and Captain Kidd are being put first.

The European Union's first naval task force is due to arrive next month in the Gulf of Aden to combat the region's unprecedented piracy scourge, which is being fuelled by the demand for cash and weapons in lawless Somalia. Ten EU countries, including Britain, have pledged support for the force - yet they may find it difficult even to make an arrest. "In the old days, when the navy would catch a pirate, they would tie his hands and feet and throw him back in the sea," said Captain Andres Breijo, the Spanish head of the new anti-piracy mission, in an interview with The Sunday Telegraph. "Now they have human rights."

Somalia is a "failed state", Capt Beijo added, and the West fears that if the pirates were handed over to the Somali authorities they would be tortured or executed. Instead, his task force will only be permitted to keep a protective watch over merchant ships in the pirate-infested waters, which punctuate one of the world's most important trade routes between the Indian Ocean and the Suez Canal. Despite the presence of the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, and Royal Navy vessels also in the vicinity, dozens of ships have been hijacked this year, including a Ukrainian vessel carrying battle tanks and World Food Programme vessels delivering humanitarian aid to the heavily armed pirates' war-torn homeland.

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In Somalia, pirates live like kings
1 Nov 2008, This may be one of the most dangerous towns in Somalia, a place where you can get kidnapped faster than you can wipe the sweat off your brow. But it is also one of the most prosperous.

Money changers walk around with thick wads of hundred-dollar bills. Palatial new houses are rising up next to tin-roofed shanties. Men in jail reminisce, with a twinkle in their eyes, about their days living like kings. This is the story of Somalia's booming, not-so-underground pirate economy. The country is in chaos, countless children are starving and people are killing one another. But one particular line of work — piracy — seems to be benefiting quite openly from all this lawlessness and desperation. This year, Somali officials say, pirate profits are on track to reach a record $50 million, all of it tax free.

More than 75 vessels have been attacked this year, far more than any other year in recent memory. About a dozen have been set upon in the past month alone. The pirates use fast-moving skiffs to pull alongside their prey and scamper on board with ladders. Once on deck, they hold the crew at gunpoint until a ransom is paid, usually $1m to $2m. In Somalia, it seems, crime does pay. Actually, it is one of the few industries that does. "All you need is three guys and a little boat, and the next day you're millionaires," said Abdullahi Omar Qawden, an ex-captain in Somalia's long-defunct navy.

Flush with cash, the pirates drive the biggest cars, run many of the town's businesses and throw the best parties. Fatuma Abdul Kadir said she went to a pirate wedding in July that lasted two days, with non-stop dancing and goat meat, and a band flown in from neighbouring Djibouti. "It was wonderful," said Fatuma, 21. "I'm now dating a pirate."

Source

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Pirates capture oil ship...

Pirates Seize Massive Oil Tanker
Nov. 17, 2008 - Attack 450 Miles From Kenyan Coast Is Furthest Out To Sea And On Biggest Vessel Yet

Somali pirates hijacked a supertanker hundreds of miles off the Horn of Africa, seizing the Saudi-owned ship loaded with crude and its 25-member crew, the U.S. Navy said Monday. It appeared to be the largest ship ever seized by pirates. After the brazen hijacking, the pirates on Monday sailed the Sirius Star to a Somali port that has become a haven for bandits and the ships they have seized, a Navy spokesman said. The hijacking was among the most brazen in a surge in attacks this year by ransom-hungry Somali pirates. Attacks off the Somali coast have increased more than 75 percent this year, and even the world's largest vessels are vulnerable.

The Sirius Star, commissioned in March and owned by the Saudi oil company Aramco, is 1,080 feet long - about the length of an aircraft carrier - making it one of the largest ships to sail the seas. It can carry about 2 million barrels of oil. Lt. Nathan Christensen, a spokesman for the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, said the pirates hijacked the ship on Saturday about 450 nautical miles off the coast of Kenya - the farthest out to sea Somali pirates have struck.By expanding their range, Somali pirates are "certainly a threat to many more vessels," Christensen said. He said the pirates on the Sirius Star were "nearing an anchorage point" at the Somali port town of Eylon Monday. Somali pirates have seized at least six several ships off the Horn of Africa in the past week, but the hijacking of a supertanker marked a dramatic escalation.

The pirates are trained fighters, often dressed in military fatigues, using speedboats equipped with satellite phones and GPS equipment. They are typically armed with automatic weapons, anti-tank rockets launchers and various types of grenades. With most attacks ending with million-dollar payouts, piracy is considered the most lucrative work in Somalia. Pirates rarely hurt their hostages, instead holding out for a huge payday. The strategy works well: A report last month by a London-based think tank said pirates have raked in up to $30 million in ransoms this year alone.

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