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Pirate ships converge on US hostage at sea
Looks like they wanna raise the stakes...NAIROBI, Kenya Escalating a dramatic Indian Ocean standoff, more U.S. warships as well as pirate reinforcements with an international gallery of hostages rushed Friday toward the spot where four Somali bandits are holding a U.S. sea captain aboard a drifting lifeboat. The pirates apparently fear being shot or arrested if they hand over Capt. Richard Phillips captured in a failed effort to seize the Maersk Alabama on Wednesday and hope to link up with their colleagues who are using Russian, German, Filipino and other hostages captured in recent days as human shields. U.S. Central Command chief Gen. David Petraeus said U.S. warships also are headed to the area, more than 300 miles (480 kilometers) off Somalia's Indian Ocean coast. "We want to ensure that we have all the capability that might be needed over the course of the coming days," he said. Pirates have been holding Phillips hostage aboard the lifeboat since his crew thwarted the attack Wednesday on the 17,000-ton U.S.-flagged Maersk Alabama. Mohamed Samaw, a Somali resident of the pirate stronghold in central Eyl town, who claims to have a "share" in a British-owned ship hijacked Monday, said four foreign ships previously captured by pirates are heading toward the lifeboat. A total of 54 hostages are on two of the ships, citizens of China, Germany, Russia, Ukraine, the Philippines, Tuvalu, Indonesia and Taiwan. "The pirates have summoned assistance skiffs and motherships are heading towards the area from the coast," said a Nairobi-based diplomat, who spoke on condition on anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media. "We knew they were gathering yesterday." Samaw said two ships left Eyl on Wednesday afternoon. A third sailed from Haradhere, another pirate base in central Somalia, and the fourth one was a Taiwanese fishing vessel seized Monday that was already only 30 miles (48 kilometers) from the lifeboat. He said the ships include the German cargo ship Hansa Stavanger, seized earlier this month. The ship's crew of 24 is made up of five Germans, three Russians, two Ukrainians, two Filipinos and 12 Tuvalus. Another man identified as a pirate by three different residents of Haradhere also said the captured German ship had been sent to the rescue. "They had asked us for reinforcement and we have already sent a good number of well-equipped colleagues, who were holding a German cargo ship," said the pirate who asked that only his first name, Badow, be used to protect him from reprisals. "We are not intending to harm the captain, so that we hope our colleagues would not be harmed as long as they hold him," Badow said. "All we need, first, is a safe route to escape with the captain, and then (negotiate) ransom later," he added. Phillips thwarted Wednesday's takeover of the Maersk Alabama by telling his crew of about 20 to lock themselves in a room, the crew told stateside relatives. The crew later overpowered some of the pirates but Phillips, 53, surrendered himself to the bandits to safeguard his men, and four of the Somalis fled with him to an enclosed lifeboat, the relatives said. The freighter that was the target of the pirates headed away from the lifeboat Thursday, Maersk shipping line said, and a teams of armed Navy SEALs is on board, according to a U.S. official who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the situation. The Alabama was sailing toward the Kenyan port of Mombasa its original destination and was expected to arrive Saturday night, said Joseph Murphy, a professor at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy whose son, Shane Murphy, is second-in-command of the vessel. FBI hostage negotiators started Thursday to work with the U.S. military to secure Phillips' release. The sea captain has a radio and has contacted the Navy and the crew of the Alabama to say he is unharmed, Maersk said. Company spokesman Kevin Speers told AP Radio the lifeboat was out of fuel and "dead in the water." Most of the lifeboats are about 28 feet (8.5 meters) long and carry water and food for 34 people for 10 days, said Joseph Murphy. The lifeboats are covered and Murphy, speaking after a briefing by the shipping company, said he suspects the pirates have closed the ports to avoid sniper fire. Maersk said the lifeboat is within sight of the USS Bainbridge, the Navy destroyer that arrived on the scene earlier Thursday. Gen. Petraeus said other warships would arrive shortly. U.S. officials said the guided-missile frigate USS Halyburton was among ships en route. Steve Romano, a retired head of the FBI hostage negotiation team, said he doesn't recall the FBI ever negotiating with pirates before, but he said this situation is similar to other standoffs. Although pirates release the vast majority of their hostages unharmed, the difficulty will be negotiating with people who clearly have no way out, he said. "There's always a potential for tragedy here, and when people feel their options are limited, they sometimes react in more unpredictable and violent ways," Romano said. More. Looks like he tried to make a break for it... WASHINGTON (AP) - Defense Department officials say the American boat captain held by Somali pirates tried to escape but was recaptured. Captain Richard Phillips jumped over the side of the small lifeboat where he has been held for two days and began swimming. Officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk about unfolding operations, say Phillips was retaken by the pirates after he jumped from the boat around midnight local time in open ocean off the Somali coast. A U.S. Navy ship patrolling nearby was able to see Phillips moving around and talking after his return to the pirate's boat. The defense officials think he is unharmed. Posted by: tu3031 2009-04-10 |
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