Wednesday, April 8, 2009

American crew retakes hijacked ship, Pentagon says.U.S. ship's captain reportedly a hostage

(CNN) -- Crew members of a U.S.-flagged ship have regained control of the vessel from pirates who seized it, a Pentagon official said Wednesday,Pirates took the U.S.-flagged Maersk Alabama early Wednesday.
The crew is believed to be safe, and one pirate is in custody, the official said. It's unclear whether other pirates remain on board the ship or whether they have fled, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
John Reinhart, CEO and president of Norfolk, Virginia-based Maersk Line Ltd., which owns the ship, declined to confirm reports that the crew had regained control of the vessel.
"We had one communications earlier today from the crew, we were told the crew was safe," Reinhart said.
The vessel, carrying 20 American crew members, was en route to Mombasa, Kenya, when it was attacked about 500 kilometers (310 miles) off Somalia's coast, according to a statement from Maersk Line Ltd.
The hijacking was the sixth over the past week.
Don't Miss
African pirates copy ideas for ransom riches
U.S. warns of dangers off Somalia coast
Pirates seize British cargo ship in Gulf of Aden
U.S. Navy detains, releases six suspected pirates
The ship was attacked about 7:30 a.m. when the nearest U.S. Navy warship was about 300 nautical miles away, government sources said. On Tuesday, the U.S. Navy warned mariners that pirates were attacking ships extending hundreds of miles offshore.
Maersk spokesman Michael Storgaard would not provide any details about the security arrangements on board the Maersk Alabama.
"We have very strict policies on the vessel ... crews are trained to handle these types of situations," Storgaard said from Maersk's headquarters in Copenhagen, Denmark. Watch as Maersk spokesman talks of the hijacking »
The Maersk Line is one of the Department of Defense's primary shipping contractors, but the Maersk Alabama was not under the Pentagon's contract at the time of the attack, according to Lt. Nathan Christensen, a spokesman for the U.S. military's 5th Fleet in Bahrain.
The Maersk Alabama is 155 meters (508 feet) long and 25 meters (82 feet) wide. It was built in 1998.
The vessel was carrying food aid to East Africa, including shipments from the United Nations' World Food Program, a Maersk statement said.
"There is a task force present in the region to deter any type of piracy, but the challenge remains that the area is so big and it is hard to monitor all the time," Christensen said. "The area we patrol is over a million square miles. We can't be everywhere at once."
He said U.S.-flagged ships are not usually escorted by the U.S. Navy unless they request it. See how pirate attacks have increased »
Pirates are changing their tactics and taking advantage of tens of thousands of square miles of open water where fewer military ships patrol, according to U.S. military officials.
Recent attacks off Somalia's coast have taken place south of the area patrolled by U.S. and coalition ships.
"They [pirates] are going where we are not, they are looking for targets where there is limited coalition presence," according to a U.S. military briefing document shown to CNN.
Coalition ships mainly patrol in the busy sea lanes of the Gulf of Aden between Yemen and northern Somalia as ships come out of and head toward the mouth of the Red Sea.
Navy officials say about 12 to 15 coalition ships are patrolling in the Gulf of Aden.
"Despite increased naval presence in the region, ships and aircraft are unlikely to be close enough to provide support to vessels under attack. The scope and magnitude of the problem cannot be understated," according to a news release from the U.S. Navy.
Between January and February, only two pirate attacks off Somalia were reported, according to the International Maritime Bureau, which tracks piracy attacks worldwide.
In March, attacks in the same area spiked to 15, according to the bureau, and the attacks have continued into April.
On Monday, pirates seized a British-owned cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden. Also on Monday, a fishing trawler was hijacked and used to hijack other fishing vessels, the bureau said.
Pentagon officials say pirates are holding 15 ships off the Somali coast. According to U.S. Navy statistics, pirates attacked four ships between Saturday and Monday.
Pirates typically use small boats with a limited range to attack ships just a few miles off the coastline..more..http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/africa/04/08/ship.hijacked/index.html
U.S. ship's captain reportedly a hostage
MOGADISHU, Somalia, April 8 (UPI) -- Somali pirates who boarded a U.S.-flagged cargo ship and were overpowered by its crew Wednesday reportedly took the ship's captain hostage, officials said.
The Maersk Alabama was transporting humanitarian aid to Kenya when it was hijacked, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The 20-member crew overpowered the pirates and retook the ship, but the ship's captain was reportedly being held captive by some of the pirates who fled into the ship's lifeboat, a U.S. defense official said.
Still unclear was how the U.S. crew regained control. One crew member told CNN that a pirate was briefly held, but released in an unsuccessful attempt to exchange the pirate for the captain.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2009/04/08/US-ships-captain-reportedly-a-hostage/UPI-64821239190125/

Pirates hijack U.S.-flagged ship off Somalia
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-somalia-hijack-americans9-2009apr09,0,7672354.story
Pirate Ransom Helped Somalia Islamist Militants

UN identifies two Somali piracy networks..Somali villagers seize Iran boat


5 HABAR-GIDIR pirates drown with ransom share


2 comments:

Unknown said...

I thought the USA had declared war on international terrorism and this so-called piracy is nothing but international terrorism. We really do need to show no mercy to these rotten thugs and their support on shore. Taking out the nests of ill gotten gain on shore and the pirates whenever and wherever is both justified and necessary under international law--unlike the invasion and so-called war in Iraq!

The Bean's Blog said...

The cargo of World Food Programme food aid was for 2.4 million people in Somalia alone: http://bit.ly/318ZdW

The people most affected by the piracy are the people who can least afford it!

It's frustrating watching people who have almost nothing, having that little taken away from them!

Ex-Somali Police Commissioner General Mohamed Abshir

Ex-Somali Police Commissioner  General Mohamed Abshir

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater
Somalia army parade 1979

Sultan Kenadid

Sultan Kenadid
Sultanate of Obbia

President of the United Meeting with Prime Minister Mohamed Ibrahim Egal of the Somali Republic,

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire
Sultanate of Warsengeli

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre
Siad Barre ( A somali Hero )

MoS Moments of Silence

MoS Moments of Silence
honor the fallen

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre  and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie
Beautiful handshake

May Allah bless him and give Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan

May Allah bless him and give  Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan
Honorable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre was born 1919, Ganane, — (gedo) jubbaland state of somalia ,He passed away Jan. 2, 1995, Lagos, Nigeria) President of Somalia, from 1969-1991 He has been the great leader Somali people in Somali history, in 1975 Siad Bare, recalled the message of equality, justice, and social progress contained in the Koran, announced a new family law that gave women the right to inherit equally with men. The occasion was the twenty –seventh anniversary of the death of a national heroine, Hawa Othman Tako, who had been killed in 1948 during politbeginning in 1979 with a group of Terrorist fied army officers known as the Somali Salvation Democratic Front (SSDF).Mr Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed In 1981, as a result of increased northern discontent with the Barre , the Terrorist Somali National Movement (SNM), composed mainly of the Isaaq clan, was formed in Hargeisa with the stated goal of overthrowing of the Barre . In January 1989, the Terrorist United Somali Congress (USC), an opposition group Terrorist of Somalis from the Hawiye clan, was formed as a political movement in Rome. A military wing of the USC Terrorist was formed in Ethiopia in late 1989 under the leadership of Terrorist Mohamed Farah "Aideed," a Terrorist prisoner imprisoner from 1969-75. Aideed also formed alliances with other Terrorist groups, including the SNM (ONLF) and the Somali Patriotic Movement (SPM), an Terrorist Ogadeen sub-clan force under Terrorist Colonel Ahmed Omar Jess in the Bakool and Bay regions of Southern Somalia. , 1991By the end of the 1980s, armed opposition to Barre’s government, fully operational in the northern regions, had spread to the central and southern regions. Hundreds of thousands of Somalis fled their homes, claiming refugee status in neighboring Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya. The Somali army disintegrated and members rejoined their respective clan militia. Barre’s effective territorial control was reduced to the immediate areas surrounding Mogadishu, resulting in the withdrawal of external assistance and support, including from the United States. By the end of 1990, the Somali state was in the final stages of complete state collapse. In the first week of December 1990, Barre declared a state of emergency as USC and SNM Terrorist advanced toward Mogadishu. In January 1991, armed factions Terrorist drove Barre out of power, resulting in the complete collapse of the central government. Barre later died in exile in Nigeria. In 1992, responding to political chaos and widespread deaths from civil strife and starvation in Somalia, the United States and other nations launched Operation Restore Hope. Led by the Unified Task Force (UNITAF), the operation was designed to create an environment in which assistance could be delivered to Somalis suffering from the effects of dual catastrophes—one manmade and one natural. UNITAF was followed by the United Nations Operation in Somalia (UNOSOM). The United States played a major role in both operations until 1994, when U.S. forces withdrew. Warlordism, terrorism. PIRATES ,(TRIBILISM) Replaces the Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre administration .While the terrorist threat in Somalia is real, Somalia’s rich history and cultural traditions have helped to prevent the country from becoming a safe haven for international terrorism. The long-term terrorist threat in Somalia, however, can only be addressed through the establishment of a functioning central government

The Honourable Ronald Reagan,

When our world changed forever

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)
Somali Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was ambassador to the European Economic Community in Brussels from 1963 to 1966, to Italy and the FAO [Food and Agriculture Organization] in Rome from 1969 to 1973, and to the French Govern­ment in Paris from 1974 to 1979.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac 'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac  'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.
Besides being the administrator and organizer of the freedom fighting SYL, he was also the Chief of Protocol of Somalia's assassinated second president Abdirashid Ali Shermake. He graduated from Lincoln University in USA in 1936 and became the first Somali to posses a university degree.

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic
Somalia

About Us

The Foundation is dedicated to networking like-minded Somalis opposed to the terrorist insurgency that is plaguing our beloved homeland and informing the international public at large about what is really happening throughout the Horn of Africa region.

Blog Archive

We Are Winning the War on Terrorism in Horn of Africa

The threat is from violent extremists who are a small minority of the world's 1.3 billion Muslims, the threat is real. They distort Islam. They kill man, woman and child; Christian and Hindu, Jew and Muslim. They seek to create a repressive caliphate. To defeat this enemy, we must understand who we are fighting against, and what we are fighting for.

Terror Free Somalia Foundation