Somali Pirates

[Guest]

No, not even, as far as the US goes. It's all about being able to keep borrowing money from China so that we don't see the most severe budget cuts of any government in the history of the world. China's relationship with Sudan is more than just oil, so that comment is a little off base as well, but the main thing is the oil. China can't replace the oil they're getting from Sudan from another market. Just can't. They also manufacture weapons there and sell them to the Sudanese. In addition they trade edible goods and that sort of thing.

 

That situation is far beyond our control, which is probably for the best speaking strictly in terms of what would happen to our country if we tried to intervene.

[EricMM 0]

I was speaking, of course, about the Chinese/Sudanese relationship.

 

And thus why the UN cannot even attempt to deal with that situation.

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Today's pirate news:

 

Apparently, a deal has been reached for the release of the Saudi oil ship, the MV Sirius Star. The pirates may get the US$12,000,000 ransom they want, although the Saudis do not want to admit it. Source: RIA Novosti (Russia).

 

The Yemeni steel cargo ship, the MV Amani, will be released without a ransom. Maybe the pirates traded the ship for "future considerations." Actually, it probably has to do with the good relations between Puntland (Somalia) and Yemen. Sources: Gulf News (Dubai); Independent Online (South Africa).

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

Apparently, even if shipping companies hired mercenaries to protect their ships, it's basically impossible to carry guns on international voyages:

 

...it's "almost impossible to carry firearms through Customs and on to vessels in most countries," as the Times of London notes.

 

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/12/piratemerc-late.html

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

FOX News wrote a similar article today about the pirates' general unstoppableness.

 

Key quote:

"If you hire a company to do it or even arm your crew personnel, I think it would put them more at risk than if they weren't. If they start shooting… now you have an international incident," said Michael Lee, assistant vice president at Miami-based "non-lethal" security company McRoberts Maritime Security.

 

Having weapons on board isn't just a health and liability hazard, it also increases insurance costs "exponentially," Lee said. Armed guards cost between $1,000 and $1,500 a day.

 

"The problem is that most ship owners will not allow crews to carry weapons on board the ship. Most of these crews come from the Philippines and other areas and they're worried they'll kill each other. They're more worried about that than they are about piracy," Dubner said.

And the concluding line:

One has to say that everything at the moment seems to be on the pirates' side.

[The Niggardly King 0]

Fuck yeah, pirates rock

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Today's pirate news:

 

NBC News interviews the captain of Al Mansoura, an Egyptian cement cargo ship that was captured on 3 September 2008. The pirates eventually received US$600,000 in ransom. This ship is currently absent from Wikipedia's list of attacked ships.

 

CAIRO – Egyptian Captain Mahmoud Hammad quickly dispelled any notion that Somali pirates treat their captives well.

NBC's Charlene Gubash quickly dispelled any notion that Charlene Gubash objectively reports the news.

 

"Mistreatment" of captives mentioned in the article:

"Any movement and they would put a gun to our heads or in our sides," he said of the pirates who seized his ship.

1. Don't move. 2. Did they fire the gun? No.

 

When the pirates shot twice in the air, everyone dropped the hoses and ran to their cabins

The pirates shot into the air (not at anyone) while crew members attempted to thwart the pirates' chance at a huge ransom.

 

I asked them to split the crew up between two cabins because 21 men locked in one cabin would suffocate. They agreed and separated them in two cabins.

The pirates listened to and accepted the captain's suggestion in regard to the safety of the crew.

 

"Finally they went to get food," said Hammad. "God knows if they stole it or what. But they would bring live sheep or goats, flour and sugar. We would do the butchering. They didn’t know anything. They only wanted two things: qat and money."

So, the pirates got food for everyone. And the captain understands that they wanted only money.

 

The deal:

Once at ease in their lair, the pirates began to demand a ransom of $3 million. Hammad became the middleman in high-stakes negotiations that would determine their survival.

Oh come on, Ms. Gubash. The negotiations determined how much money the pirates would receive.

 

For 13 tense days, from 10 p.m. until 3 a.m. Hammad, who was in direct contact with a member of Egyptian intelligence and the ship’s owner, bargained them down.

 

"We told them the cement is ruined and nobody will want it. They will throw it in the sea. You damaged our ship’s equipment and now the ship won’t be worth its full price. So they came down to $2 million. I said no Egyptian will pay that price for the ship. They will say keep the ship and we will take the crew because they belong to their country. The pirates finally came down to $600,000 and the ship’s owner agreed to the price."

The pirates accepted a lower offer than they had demanded after listening to the reasons that their demands were too high.

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Today's pirate news:

 

Salon has an excellent interview with Nick Davis, head of Anti-Piracy Maritime Security Solutions. I've added this article to the list of excellent articles in the first post.

 

Key quotes:

The pain threshold for a human for noise is around 120 decibels. These transmit at 150 decibels. It's fairly considerable excruciating pain when you get within 200 to 300 meters of this noise. That coupled with the ship going at full speed and zigzagging and water cannons, barbed wire and grease and various other bits and pieces on the back of the ship all basically amount to a fairly effective deterrent for what is basically from the pirate's capabilities a fairly primitive way of boarding, i.e., throwing a grappling hook onto the back of the ship and climbing up a rope ladder.

They fire their AK-47s as sort of a warning, a deterrent, to get you to stop the vessel. They never actually normally direct it at any personnel. They direct it at the ship. At the ship's hull, the ship's superstructure. They're not into getting you between the cross hairs and trying to take you out. They're purely after scaring you and getting you to stop the vessel so that they can board.

to be honest with you, as soon as you've activated all of the procedures with regards to the acoustic and the water cannons, and the zigzagging, they know it's not worth it going any further. So they quite often just come up and shout and scream at you and sort of wave and then turn south to the next vessel.

(lol)

 

Obviously, they use very primitive means to get on board -- they've got a speedboat, a couple of AK-47s and a rope ladder, it's as technical as that. So, they don't use very sophisticated means. Once they're on board, then there's nothing the coalition forces can do.

I think we're currently in a 12- to 18-month problem period before the United Nations and the world leaders come together and start an effective political movement into Somalia and then invest and regenerate the coastal population of that country so that they don't feel that they need to go and hijack ships anymore.

These are definitely modern-day Robin Hoods, for sure. But fairly well organized. There is absolutely zero link with terrorists or anything like that.

generally they're just really, really hacked off that all these ships are passing through their waters but Egypt gets a load of revenue from it, the second biggest revenue generator to Egypt after tourism, and yet right next door and in order to get to that canal, they've got to come through Somali waters, yet Somalia doesn't get a penny.

no matter how much people tell me how good these Blackwater people are and how they're all ex-Navy Seals -- great, but if they're [sic] just come out of Iraq and Afghanistan and they think they're going to have three months of an easy time in the Gulf of Aden aboard the ship, if they're a bit light-fingered on the trigger, and they start killing people in what they claim is self-defense but actually there was no real perceived threat, then I think it's a bad move. I think it would escalate the situation beyond all proportion in a bad way.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

I'd add this article as well, from Wired's Danger Room blog. Among other issues, the very same Nick Davis points out the big problem with those noise blasters that went unmentioned in the Salon interview:

 

On board the Biscaglia, however, the blaster didn't work. The pirates fired rocket-propelled grenades and AK-47s at the weapon; the guards jumped off of the ship, and into the Gulf of Aden. "It now seems that the failure of the company's LRADs was a major factor in its seeming inability to prevent the capture of the ship. It is now openly being asked whether or not they are up to the job," writes Lloyd's List, the influential shipping journal.

...

"What I am saying is that the pirates were basically laughing at our guys while shooting them out. LRADs don't work when they take an AK-47 round through them," APMSS principal Nick Davis tells Lloyd's List.

The whole non-lethal noise blaster really doesn't seem sufficient, since all it takes to nullify its effects are some good earplugs and a few rifle rounds (to say nothing of an RPG).

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

I looked for more technical information about the audio device and its effect on the human body. The Wikipedia article long range acoustic device contains this interesting (although uncited) bit:

Countermeasures may include the use of passive hearing protection (earplugs, headsets), which may bring the sound down to ineffective levels. In addition, sound could be reflected from a solid surface, and redirected back to the originator.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

A European Union flotilla will begin anti-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia next week, the EU's foreign policy chief said Wednesday.

 

The six warships and three maritime reconnaissance aircraft will replace a NATO naval force that has been patrolling the region and escorting cargo ships carrying relief aid to Somalia since the end of October.

 

Although the NATO ships have successfully delivered nearly 30,000 tons of humanitarian supplies to the impoverished nation, they have not been able to stem the upsurge in pirate attacks on foreign shipping in one of the most important shipping lanes in the world.

 

Foreign policy chief Javier Solana said the EU warships will arrive Monday, and the hand-over with the NATO force will take place Dec. 15.

 

Officials said France, Greece, Germany and Britain will provide ships for the initial naval contingent, and France and Italy will provide patrol aircraft. The contingents will be rotated every three months, and at least four vessels will remain on station at all times.

 

The task force — codenamed Operation Atalanta — will be the EU's first naval operation. It will have the same duties as the NATO mission, including escorting cargo vessels, protecting merchant ships and deterring pirate attacks.

 

"These tasks will be done with very robust rules of engagement," Solana told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers.

 

The NATO ministers agreed on Monday to ask the U.N. Security Council to clarify the legal issues involved in the anti-piracy effort. Under the current U.N. mandate, the international fleet operating off the Horn of Africa has not been able to board ships seized by the pirates in order to free their hostages.

 

On Wednesday, ministers said they would also consider the possibility of deploying a follow-up anti-piracy mission to assist the EU ships...

 

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/12/03/...O-EU-Piracy.php

 

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Pfft, a flotilla. A tortilla would be more effective, because, as Yusuf Hassan says in one of the videos that accompanies an excellent CNN article, "People are hungry. People are, you know—the UN estimates nearly 3 million people need food assistance in Somalia this year."

 

From the written article:

Somalis are so desperate to survive that attacks on merchant shipping in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean will not stop, a pirate leader promises.

"Who can stop them? Americans and British all put together cannot do anything."

Boyah said that the piracy began because traditional coastal fishing became difficult after foreign fishing trawlers depleted local fish stocks. Traditional fishermen started attacking the trawlers until the trawler crews fought back with heavy weapons.

"For the past three years, we have not operated near the Somali coast. We have operated at least 80 miles [out], in international waters."

Kenya's foreign minister, Moses Wetangula, estimates the pirates have been paid more than $150 million during the past year.

the military presence does not concern pirate leader Boyah. He boasts the pirates literally sail in a vast ocean beneath the radar of the warships.

 

"No ship has the capability to see everything," he said. "A ship can see 80 miles or so [on radar]. It cannot see us at all. No one can do anything about it."

Boyah said it is unlikely the Puntland regional government would ever crack down on piracy because government officials are involved in financing the piracy and collect a cut of the ransoms.

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Today's pirate news:

 

1. Drudge links to a short IHT article that the AP wrote about China's sending ships to combat piracy.

 

Key quote:

"Piracy doesn't just interfere in our country's navigational safety, it also impedes our development and interests," Major General Jin Yinan told state radio.

 

2. The UN spies on pirates from space and makes pretty maps. (Wired.)

 

3. Excellent article alert: Spiegel writes more in-depth about the struggles of Somali fishermen.

 

Key quotes:

"Help us solve the problem," said professional fisherman Muhammed Hussein from the coastal city of Marka, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of the Somali capital Mogadishu. "What is happening here is economic terrorism."

The intruders, Hussein and Shaykh Abdi complained, used nets with very small mesh sizes and fished with banned dragnets, and with dynamite in some cases. The foreign fishing boats would ram local fishing vessels, pour boiling water on them and, if they still refused to budge, shoot at them.

Back then the Somali fishermen were doing badly. Today they are even worse off. Trawlers from faraway places continue to ply the waters off the long coastline, ships from Japan and India, as well as Italy and Spain. The Spanish fishing cutter that pirates hijacked in May and the Thai trawler an Indian warship inadvertently sank in early November provided evidence of just how attractive the Somali fishing grounds are worldwide.

Fish processing, especially for export, has ceased to exist.

Somali fishermen have another problem: toxic waste. Initially dumped on land, toxic waste was increasingly dumped at sea after the collapse of the regime of former President Siad Barre in 1991. Because the country has no coast guard, for the past 20 years the Somali coastline has had no protection against European ships dumping waste at sea.

According to a United Nations report, many coastal residents suffered "acute respiratory infections, heavy coughing, bleeding gums and mouth, abdominal haemorrhages, unusual skin rashes, and even death."

The lack of scruples displayed by foreigners using Somali waters to dump their toxic waste is not all that surprising: proper waste disposal in Europe costs about 400 times as much as illegal dumping in Somalia.

"The Somali coastline has been destroyed, and we believe this money is nothing compared to the devastation that we have seen on the seas," said Januna Ali Jama, a spokesman for the pirate group that is still waiting for its ransom for the MV Faina

Bosaso, Eyl and Hobyo, which, until recently, were miserably poor fishing towns, are barely recognizable today. Small mansions are popping up by the dozen, new restaurants are opening their doors, giant weddings are all the rage and the imports of four-wheel-drive SUVs are booming. Clan affiliation, long one of the key impediments to development in Somalia, is suddenly irrelevant.

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Bill O'Reilly and Dennis Miller have a serious, intelligent conversation about Somali pirates (FOX News):

 

O'REILLY: OK. Now I know the Somali pirates are on your mind. You're probably the only American who has them on his mind, but you go right ahead.

 

MILLER: Just let me get this straight. A guy pulls up in a Hovicat in a pair of neon flip-flops with a Che Guevera wife beater T-shirt on, and they somehow take over a ship? Can't Fred Brandy (ph) pass out some of the skeet shooting gear? While they were plunging off the bull rope, somebody just picks them off. Are you kidding me? These people could not take over a ship. What about Pussy Galore's swine circus coming in plane crop-dusting them and crop-dusting these nut cases, pull them off and hang them in the Times Square? The next thing you'll know, they'll be suing the Pittsburgh Pirates for depicting that in a caricaturish way.

 

O'REILLY: It is kind of amazing. They had a bunch of 9-year-olds, if you show the picture of the pirates, the average age is about 9. And the gun is bigger than they are — can take over the three-mile-wide tanker with no resistance. The fix might be in there, Miller. You know what I'm talking about?

 

MILLER: Well, I'll tell you what. They haven't seen violence until they jump an old Jewish couple on the buffet line on one of these cruises in the Caribbean.

 

O'REILLY: All right. Christmas shopping now, what do you do? Do you go to the mall, Miller? I mean, do you go into Wise Guys 'R' Us and buy stuff?

 

MILLER: Usually got it online. This year, I got kids a DVD of the "Somali Pirates of the Caribbean."

 

O'REILLY: It's a good film.

 

MILLER: Johnny Depp walking around, conking people with a frozen splif.

FUCK THE HECK?

[Prophet of Mike Zagurski 0]

I used to be a Dennis Miller fan but he sounds like the head writer for Family Guy. He strings together nouns and names together and it doesn't make any sense.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

Bill O'Reilly and Dennis Miller have a serious, intelligent conversation about Somali pirates (FOX News):

 

O'REILLY: OK. Now I know the Somali pirates are on your mind. You're probably the only American who has them on his mind, but you go right ahead.

 

MILLER: Just let me get this straight. A guy pulls up in a Hovicat in a pair of neon flip-flops with a Che Guevera wife beater T-shirt on, and they somehow take over a ship? Can't Fred Brandy (ph) pass out some of the skeet shooting gear? While they were plunging off the bull rope, somebody just picks them off. Are you kidding me? These people could not take over a ship. What about Pussy Galore's swine circus coming in plane crop-dusting them and crop-dusting these nut cases, pull them off and hang them in the Times Square? The next thing you'll know, they'll be suing the Pittsburgh Pirates for depicting that in a caricaturish way.

 

O'REILLY: It is kind of amazing. They had a bunch of 9-year-olds, if you show the picture of the pirates, the average age is about 9. And the gun is bigger than they are — can take over the three-mile-wide tanker with no resistance. The fix might be in there, Miller. You know what I'm talking about?

 

MILLER: Well, I'll tell you what. They haven't seen violence until they jump an old Jewish couple on the buffet line on one of these cruises in the Caribbean.

 

O'REILLY: All right. Christmas shopping now, what do you do? Do you go to the mall, Miller? I mean, do you go into Wise Guys 'R' Us and buy stuff?

 

MILLER: Usually got it online. This year, I got kids a DVD of the "Somali Pirates of the Caribbean."

 

O'REILLY: It's a good film.

 

MILLER: Johnny Depp walking around, conking people with a frozen splif.

FUCK THE HECK?

 

The banality of ignorance.

 

We should most def send in O'Reilly & Miller to take on the Somali pirate problem. Maybe they could bluster the pirates into submission.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

Bill O'Reilly and Dennis Miller have a serious, intelligent conversation about Somali pirates (FOX News):

 

O'REILLY: OK. Now I know the Somali pirates are on your mind. You're probably the only American who has them on his mind, but you go right ahead.

 

MILLER: Just let me get this straight. A guy pulls up in a Hovicat in a pair of neon flip-flops with a Che Guevera wife beater T-shirt on, and they somehow take over a ship? Can't Fred Brandy (ph) pass out some of the skeet shooting gear? While they were plunging off the bull rope, somebody just picks them off. Are you kidding me? These people could not take over a ship. What about Pussy Galore's swine circus coming in plane crop-dusting them and crop-dusting these nut cases, pull them off and hang them in the Times Square? The next thing you'll know, they'll be suing the Pittsburgh Pirates for depicting that in a caricaturish way.

 

O'REILLY: It is kind of amazing. They had a bunch of 9-year-olds, if you show the picture of the pirates, the average age is about 9. And the gun is bigger than they are — can take over the three-mile-wide tanker with no resistance. The fix might be in there, Miller. You know what I'm talking about?

 

MILLER: Well, I'll tell you what. They haven't seen violence until they jump an old Jewish couple on the buffet line on one of these cruises in the Caribbean.

 

O'REILLY: All right. Christmas shopping now, what do you do? Do you go to the mall, Miller? I mean, do you go into Wise Guys 'R' Us and buy stuff?

 

MILLER: Usually got it online. This year, I got kids a DVD of the "Somali Pirates of the Caribbean."

 

O'REILLY: It's a good film.

 

MILLER: Johnny Depp walking around, conking people with a frozen splif.

FUCK THE HECK?

 

The banality of ignorance.

 

We should most def send in O'Reilly & Miller to take on the Somali pirate problem. Maybe they could bluster the pirates into submission.

 

Something I learned today: apparently a great deal of Somali parents want their sons to grow up to be pirates now, and their daughters to marry pirates.

 

And one other note: there has been a "security corridor" established by allied naval ships in the Gulf of Aden (not the whole Somali coast), but the pirates have already adapted to it. The cruise liner that outran the pirates the other day was actually in the security corridor, but still too far away from any of the naval vessels to receive any assistance.

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

What's odd is that Mr. Miller, speaking like a Tamarian, still makes more sense than Mr. O'Reilly.

 

the average age is about 9. And the gun is bigger than they are — can take over the three-mile-wide tanker with no resistance. The fix might be in there

Most Somali pirates are 20–35 years old.^[1]

 

The MV Sirius Star has a length (not width) of 1090 feet—0.2 miles.^[2]

 

Saudi's foreign minister today described the hijacking as "an outrageous act".

 

In the first public comments made by the Saudi government on the issue, Prince Saud Al-Faisal said: "Piracy, like terrorism, is a disease which is against everybody, and everybody must address it together."

[sic] for "a disease which." Anyway, the fix is not in.^[3]

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Today's pirate news:

 

Since Douglas R. Burgess, Jr. used The New York Times today as a medium to sell his shitty piracy book, we should respond with the following excellent article: What I learned from the Somalia pirates.

 

Key quotes:

For years the world has ignored Somalia as a parochial African backwater involved in a nasty civil war.

The allegation in many reports on Somalia is that piracy is funding militant Islamist forces fighting the local Westernbacked government. The London-based Jane's Terrorism & Security Monitor claimed last month that the Islamists, known as alShabaab, had raised a force of 2,500 pirates to run guns and attack shipping.

 

The real story is more bizarre.

The pirate gangs, it turns out, are organised by ex-fishermen

Today the gangs recruit ordinary youths.

 

Most rank-and-file pirates cannot even swim. Their only required skill is to shoot straight. These youths usually participate only in a couple of operations, hoping to make enough money to get asylum in the West.

Imams at the mosques have declared piracy haram, forbidden under Islamic law.

Western countries including Britain have given substantial funding to Yusuf's forces, regarding him as an ally in the war on terror against the Islamist insurgents fighting his government.

 

Yusuf and his close circle hail from Puntland, Somalia's north-eastern semiautonomous region. Estimates are that at least six ministers in the Puntland government, which is allied to Yusuf, are involved with the pirates -- together with two former police chiefs and sundry mayors. Puntland's police forces were trained by the United Nations using British funding. But in some port towns pirate gangs are now paying police salaries. Puntland is the modern world's first genuine pirate state.

My information is that the pirates behave like perfect gentlemen once the money is handed over and they always release the boats in good humour.

in recent months I have heard repeated allegations that US Navy ships have enjoyed friendly relations with pirates off Puntland.

 

In one story, pirates were invited aboard a US Navy ship for a cup of coffee and a smoke, while the Americans showed gang members national flags of ships that should be left alone.

 

This all seems extremely odd unless American forces assume that the pirates are in some way linked to the Puntland authorities with whom they are allied.

In 2006, when Mogadishu was ruled by Islamist militants, I witnessed forces of the Islamic courts jump into speedboats, zoom out to sea and arrest a gang of pirates who had seized a cargo ship. The Islamists paraded gang members on the portside before taking them off for harsh punishment. That was the end of piracy in that part of Somalia until Abdullahi Yusuf's government was installed during an invasion of Ethiopian troops, when attacks on shipping resumed.

 

The only group in Somalia today that publicly declares it will end piracy is the militant al-Shabaab, because it says such crimes are forbidden under Islamic law.

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Today I'm going to play a game: COMMENT BATTLE: AMERICA VS. THE WORLD! I will check fairly current news articles and compare the first substantial American comment with the first substantial non-American comment. A point will be awarded when there is a clear winner. The format is best 3 out of 5.

 

1. Somali pirates free Yemeni ship (Al Jazeera English)

andrew yusuf

United States 03/12/2008

 

UN "approval"??

 

since when do nations need UN approval to deal with pirates? the US constitution already gives the Federal government that power, and im sure other nations have similar laws aswell,

Simon

Canada 04/12/2008

 

Yes, UN approval

 

I would think it has something to do with violating the sovereignty of Somalia when entering its waters, not just a constitutional right of the U.S. to unilaterally violate a countries sovereignty.

USA: 0

World: 1

 

2. Cruise ship Britons in brush with Gulf pirates (The Times)

Maybe the pirates were hiding among the fishing boats, to get closer to ships. A pirate gave an interview in which he said piracy started when local fishermen attacked other fishermen who had entered Somalia's waters. Maybe all the pirates are fishermen.

 

J Rhinehart, SC, USA

Blow the pirates out of the water! What is the problem? Isn't it sad how the US and UK blow the hell out of Iraq because they have oil and murder thousands of innocent citizens but then when we have pirates taking over ships for ransom all of a sudden the pirates have too many human rights!!!

 

Harry, London, UK

USA: 1

World: 1

 

3. Somali pirates seek 'honest' talks (Al Jazeera English)

Abdi

Somalia 27/11/2008

 

The world should stop piracy

 

Sine the piracy started the world had not done anything to stop the pirates, and still sending big military Vessels to fight pirates, my suggestion the world should solve the crisis through shaping the whole policy of the country, which means if the are serous the should establish a very strong central government which can handle the issues of pirates, otherwise it seems the action ridiculous and meaningless.

Victor

United States 28/11/2008

 

Honest talks? Yeahh Rightt

 

I do believe that the pirates are sincere in their request for honest talks. They are professionals and have embarked on a career that is profitable to them and costly to the rest of the world. Besides, they are Muslims, the owners of the ship are Muslims. There is always honest talks between Muslims. If the owners are non-Muslim, They will hold on till the end ... paid ransom at their price or suicide along with the hostages. We know where their hideout, just NUKE em w/ Irans first bomb.

USA: 1

World: 2

 

4. Hong Kong grain ship seized as Somali pirates hold world to ransom (The Times)

A political solution is not going to happen. Historically, pirates have been stopped by crushing their harbors of operation. Use American B-52's. First carpet bomb a swatch of empty desert not far from the Port of Ely. Give them a day to set the ships and crews free. If not, bomb the port.

 

Frank Stein, Berlin, Germany

Isn't the Australian Navy on vacation because of a budget crunch? How about pay them to protect the shipping lanes! Seriously, even a lightly armored military vessel should be able to ward off these pirates. It's a joke that the military powers of the world can't prevent this from happening.

 

Scott Jones, Seattle, USA

USA: 2

World: 2

 

Let's settle it with this 'neutral' story:

 

5. Navy 'sunk Thai trawler by mistake' (Al Jazeera English)

Michael

New Zealand (Aotearoa) 27/11/2008

 

Ayub

 

How do you twist an attack on Pirates into a political rave about Kashmiri Muslims. Next thing you'll be saying it was America's fault. Your mind is so twisted with political & religious retoric that you cannot see things as they are. The fishing trawler became a Pirate vessel the moment the Pirates commandeered it.

Glen

United States 27/11/2008

 

Deadly Mistake

 

How sad for both the Indian naval personnel and the innocent victims on the Thai fishing boat. Most ethical people never relish the taking of an innocent life. It simply underscores the need to hunt the pirates down and insure that they have no sanctuary.

This post exemplifies a typical American's simplification. He acts as if the Thai ship were just minding its own business. In fact, it was one of the many ships that have robbed the Somali coastline of its fish. Thus...

 

USA: 2

World: 3

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Today's pirate news:

 

The Mindanao Examiner (Philippines) has a roundup of recent news. I am most interested in the section of the article that questions a Danish warship's destruction of a Somali vessel.

 

Key quotes:

A Danish warship rescued a group of suspected pirates in the Gulf of Aden on Thursday after receiving a distress signal from the ship, which was floundering in heavy seas, the Danish Navy said. The Naval Operational Command said the Absalon was bound by international law to help the men and that Danish sailors had uncovered a number of weapons onboard the vessel similar to those often used in pirate attacks on merchant ships. "Due to the weather, it was not possible to take the troubled ship in tow and it was destroyed in the interest of shipping safety," the Navy said in a statement.

Will the Danish now destroy every fishermen's vessel in distress or because they carry weapons for self-defence with the same right the Danish do? Who oversees the Danish Navy action, who counter-checks? To balance the reporting it must be said that every Somali fisherman carries at least an AK47 rifle for self-defence to do his legitimate artisanal fishing in the waters of Somalia, because there is no government who could guarantee his safety by other means and the waters near Yemen are even more dangerous.

It is very clear that the 7 men in the boat - all of presumed Somali origin - were not observed in any act or even attempted approach or attack against any other vessel, which would make them suspicious to or which would have constituted an act of piracy. They actually - and that was established by the Somali interpreter on board the Absalon - had been floating since 8 days on the waters because their outboard engine had failed and couldn't be repaired.

for some Somalis today to carry an RPG launcher is just like one carries any other weapon in the struggle for survival. While the RPGs were destroyed together with the vessel, the 5 AKs were confiscated by the Danish, was stated by the naval officer. Critics might want to state, however, that it was not necessary to destroy the vessel in a filmed shooting exercise, which then was aired on Danish and international TV.

The comparatively tiny boat would certainly not have affected shipping safety and even in the most troubled waters it could have been an interesting exercise for the mariners to also rescue and lift the vessel on board of the Absalon with all its manpower and technical equipment available.

"We had a situation where these guys were shipwrecked persons," Lieutenant Commander Jesper Lynge, a Danish Navy spokesman, told the Tribune. "But we haven't caught them in an act of piracy, and what their main purpose was—your guess is as good as mine."

Arbitrary findings of self-styled kangaroo-courts on the bridges of war-vessels who decide to extradite people from the waters of one nation into the jurisdiction of another state make a mockery of international human rights and international law. In this respect the actual rescue operation, for which the Danish must be applauded, could easily backfire, if the rescued Somalis didn't want to be extradited to Yemen, a country with an awful human rights record, since then handing-over turns into abduction and rendition.

The Danish Navy must be held fully responsible, if it commits atrocities in the once rich tuna-fishing grounds of Somalia. Danmark, whose breakaway Islands of the Faroe commit every year the most bloody slaughter of pilot whales in the world, itself is infamous for its trawlers illegally fishing in the Artic as well as in the Southern Ocean.

 

Denmark also is involved in the illegal trade in fish e.g. in the Southern Ocean, Greepeace established and implicates Denmark - among others - as home to pirate fishers. Denmark is known also for raiding other nations fishing grounds directly. Danish fishing vessels even dared to illegally fish in British waters, but there at least the Danish got arrested.

[sic]

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Today's pirate news:

 

The pirates on the MV Faina are unhappy that the ship's owners are taking too long to hand over the US$3,500,000 ransom. Source: AFP.

 

Somali pirates are not only in the Gulf of Aden. They tried to capture a Dutch ship off of the coast of Tanzania, but the ship sped up and got away. Source: AP.

 

We'll capture another one soon.

[At Home 0]

Yay Dutch!

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Neoconservative Max Boot writes an opinion piece for The Wall Street Journal entitled Pirates, terrorism, and failed states.

 

Key quotes:

What if anything can outside powers do to bring the rule of law to these troubled lands? In the 19th century, the answer was simple: European imperialists would plant their flag and impose their laws at gunpoint. The territory that now comprises Pakistan was not entirely peaceful when it was under British rule. Nor was Somalia under Italian and British sovereignty. But they were considerably better off than they are today -- not only from the standpoint of Western countries but also from the standpoint of their own citizens.

 

You might think that such imperialism is simply unacceptable today. But you would be only partially right.

In the case of the Somali pirates, creative solutions can include using air and naval power to hit the bases from which they operate

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Today's pirate news:

 

Today was the beginning of the anti-piracy effort that is known as Atalanta—the European Union's first maritime operation. AFP, quoting the International Maritime Bureau, says that yesterday's attack off of the coast of Tanzania indicates that "the pirates have already modified their tactics."

 

We also have a "news" article in the IHT by Mark McDonald that opens in the following manner:

 

A nightmare scenario has shipowners, insurers, seafarers and naval officers in something of a panic, given a sharp increase in brazen pirate attacks in the Gulf of Aden.

 

The scenario unfolds with the Somali pirates in control of the Saudi supertanker Sirius Star becoming frustrated in negotiations over their ransom demands. They pump 50,000 gallons of crude oil into the water - a fraction of the tanker's load - and they threaten to leave the pumps running until their demands for $15 million are met. To reinforce their message, they toss a crew member over the side, and he drowns in the oily muck.

 

The scenario is horrifying but plausible.

He presents the second paragraph as if that scenario actually happened. Then he begins the third paragraph by admitting that he made it up. Nothing written thereafter indicates why that scenario is plausible. I'll remember your terribleness, Mark McDonald. He does, however, report some actual news later in the article:

 

Berg said some pirate outfits were now getting inside information in Europe about upcoming shipments of dangerous cargo and shipping routes, the better to plot and pick their attacks.

[Vigo 0]

So how long until we see other countries engaging in piracy? It's proving quite lucrative for the Somali pirates so I'm sure there are some other people itching to get a piece of the pie.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

So how long until we see other countries engaging in piracy? It's proving quite lucrative for the Somali pirates so I'm sure there are some other people itching to get a piece of the pie.

 

I don't think it's all that likely since most countries have, ya know, governments. And along with governments come coast guards, navies, police, etc.

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Piracy does exist in other places. I recommend looking at the International Maritime Bureau's live piracy map. (It's also linked in the excellent articles in the first post.)

 

The IMB says that Indonesia's waters are the most dangerous in the world—particularly in the Malacca Straits.^[1] Journalist Kelly McEvers explains:^[2]

 

As for the Strait of Malacca, the regional navies have stepped up patrols, and this has made a dent in piracy. The U.S. and Japan for years have offered to come in, but the governments of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore have pretty fiercely rejected such aid, saying it encroaches on their sovereignty. The problem will never be alleviated until these countries can tackle corruption in a big and systematic way. As long as you have underpaid, crooked cops who are willing to turn a blind eye to pirates in exchange for a cut of the booty, you will have piracy.

I know that these islands in Indonesia thrive on sea-borne crime. Not just piracy, but stealing oil from tankers and re-selling it on the black market. There's been piracy in the Strait of Malacca for centuries. I think it's difficult for anyone to imagine a scenario without this source of income.

Earlier in the year, the IMB said that Nigeria had overtaken Indonesia as the number one hot spot for piracy.^[3] Evidently the Nigerian navy can't handle the Nigerian pirates when they're violently attacking the oil and fishing industries.^[3][4]

 

Somali pirates are different, though. All credible news sources indicate that they have no desire to resell the contents of the vessels nor to harm anyone. It's a business that fishermen started because their fish are being stolen or killed by other countries, there aren't many ways to earn money in Somalia, and there is no effective government to stop them (since the Islamic Courts Union was removed by the US and Ethiopia). Also, the regional Puntland government not only to allows piracy but finances it and takes cuts of the ransoms. Somalis use piracy to survive and to improve the conditions in Somalia. (Sources: articles that I've posted in this thread.)

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Today's privateer news:

 

1. The MV Captain Stephanos, a Greek coal ship, has finally been released. It was captured on 21 September. No word on the ransom amount. (Source: Xinhua.)

 

2. Mutiny on the Faina? AFP reported that two crew members on the MV Faina "jumped" the Somali privateers but failed to overpower them. Well, it turns out that the privateers made up the story after two of the privateers involved were captured by Americans. It looks like the ransom money is finally on its way, though. (Source: ITAR-TASS.)

 

3. Today we have not just an excellent article but a FIVE-STAR excellent article. Nasr Ibn Othmann, a Somali, writes an opinion piece for Garowe Online entitled The unlicensed and undocumented privateers of Somalia.

 

Key quotes:

I must admit that I was rather amused when I first encountered the phrase Unlicensed and Undocumented Privateers of Somalia. When I reflected upon these words for a moment, I realised that this is the perfect description of the noble men who currently guard the marine resource of the Somali nation.

we must never tolerate the blatant racism that underpins the usage of words like Somali Pirates, or Islamic Pirates.

I shall use the term 'Somali privateers' as a way of contrasting them with, say, 'Indonesian pirates.' If you search for "Islamic pirates," two of the earliest results are from Infidel Blogger's Alliance and Islam Must Be Stopped.

 

We, the Somali people, must never tolerate the speculative statements, of so-called journalist experts, who earn their pay by dreaming up potential linkages between international terrorism and the honourable business of protecting Somali territorial waters.

Mark McDonald, Max Boot, Time magazine: take note.

 

What has the world come to when the fish stocks of an entire nation—the Somali nation—are brazenly looted by piratical industrial fishing vessels from France, Spain, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Egypt, Kenya, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Yemen, Belize and Honduras without regard for the natives of Somalia? What has the world come to when certain leading member states of the European Union actively dispose of their industrial, toxic, and nuclear waste in Somali national waters without so much as a thought? How can any group of people be expected to sit idle as both their economy and their environment are severely degraded by people who really should know better? I am of the opinion that the Somali people should be treated with respect. The Somali people are well within their rights when it comes to defending their marine resources.

Sums up the problem nicely.

 

It is a sad state of affairs that today the Somali nation is somehow expected to apologise to the many racists of this world for having dared to protect its national resources, its culture, and its dignity. Therefore, I state unequivocally that a pirate is a criminal and that a privateer acts within the law. Self defence is a central pillar of the laws of men, and self defence is enshrined in the laws of God. Only the most depraved can deny this truth. It is with the blessing of the Almighty that the privateers of Somalia operate. Until the manifestly disrespectful attitude of the outside world, and the overt racism of armchair analyst is properly addressed, I fear that we shall not witness a positive resolution to the current state of affairs in coastal Somalia.

Whether "self defence is enshrined in the laws of God" (or nature) would be an interesting philosophical discussion. Clearly, neocons like Max Boot don't see it as justified self-defense, but left-libertarians like Xavier Cromartie do.

 

The idea that there are thousands of young Somali men, who happen to be both armed and skilful mariners indicates that the Somalis are always going to come out on top when it comes to the privateering industry. The economies of scale, and the fact that Somalia belongs to the Somalis must compel the vicious and greedy policy makers in Europe, Asia, and North America to act honourably for once. They must learn that Somali fishing rights must be respected, and that all foreign fishing vessels illegally operating in Somali national waters must be apprehended: Either by the so-called international community or by the noble privateers of Somalia. Only then shall this problem be solved.

In the other articles I've read, (like this CNN one, written today) analysts state, "We need an effective government in Somalia ... and what we really need is a coordinated response. Somalia can't do it without its neighbors and the international community." But, in a separate excellent article (The physiology of a nation at war) by the same author, he writes that (1) "the concept of centralised political power is alien to Somali culture. The Somali people are unique because of the poly-centric nature of their national political space. The Somali people were early pioneers of the concept of social networking." and (2) "Somali people hate injustice, and foreign intervention in Somali national affairs is the epitome of injustice." Part of the real solution, as the author stated, is for "the vicious and greedy policy makers in Europe, Asia, and North America to act honourably for once."

[Xavier Cromartie 0]

Ladies and gentlemen, we got 'em.

 

Somali pirates hijack two Yemeni fishing ships, hold 22 fishermen

Africa News

Dec 10, 2008, 17:45 GMT

 

Sana'a, Yemen - Somali pirates hijacked two Yemeni fishing ships and took 22 fishermen hostage in the Gulf of Aden on Wednesday, Yemen's Interior Ministry said.

 

The pirates attacked the ships as they sailed off the Mait area near the southern port city of Aden, the ministry said in a statement posted on its website.

 

Before the pirates took control of the ships, seven fishermen escaped on a small boat to report the attacks to the Yemeni Coast Guard Authority in Aden, the statement said.

 

Twenty-two other fishermen, all Yemenis, were held hostage on the hijacked ships, it said.

 

The reported hijacking took place late on Wednesday, hours after a German cruise ship evacuated 370 passengers and crew members in a Yemeni port before it headed to the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden on its way to Oman.