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| -Lurid Crime Tales- | |
| Somali pirates seize ship with 21 Americans onboard | |
| 2009-04-08 | |
| Somali pirates seized a Danish-owned, U.S.-operated container ship on Wednesday with 21 American crew on board in the latest of a sharp rise in attacks off the Horn of Africa nation, a maritime group said. Andrew Mwangura of the Kenya-based East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme said the 17,000 ton vessel was hijacked in the Indian Ocean 400 miles off the Somali capital Mogadishu. He said all the crew were believed to be safe, and that the vessel had been tentatively identified as the Maersk Alabama.
In the first three months of 2009 only eight ships had been hijacked in the busy Gulf of Aden, which links Europe to Asia and the eastern Indian Ocean through the Suez Canal. Last year, heavily armed Somali pirates hijacked dozens of vessels, took hundreds of sailors hostage, often for weeks, and extracted millions of dollars in ransoms. Foreign navies rushed warships to the area in response and have reduced the number of successful attacks in recent months. But there are still near-daily attempts and the pirates have started hunting further afield near the Seychelles. On Monday, they hijacked a British-owned, Italian-operated ship with 16 Bulgarian crew members on board. Over the weekend, they also seized a French yacht, a Yemeni tug and a 20,000-tonne German container vessel. Interfax news agency said the Hansa Stavanger had a German captain, three Russians, two Ukrainians and 14 Filipinos on board. The pirates typically use speed boats launched from "mother ships," which means they can sometimes evade foreign navies patrolling the busy shipping lanes and strike far out to sea. They take captured vessels to remote coastal village bases in Somalia, where they have usually treated their hostages well in anticipation of a sizeable ransom payment. Pirates stunned the shipping industry last year when they seized a Saudi supertanker loaded with $100 million worth of crude oil. The Sirius Star and its 25 crew were freed in January after $3 million was parachuted onto its deck. Last September, they also grabbed world headlines seizing a Ukrainian cargo ship carrying 33 Soviet-era T-72 tanks. It was released in February, reportedly for a $3.2 million ransom. What a disgrace. It's past time to deploy Marine security teams and naval gunners on these ships when they are about to enter lawless waters. Thomas Jefferson wouldn't have stood for it. | |
| Posted by:Atomic Conspiracy |
| #23 Expect an apology to the pirates from Washington in 10, 9, 8, 7, .... |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2009-04-08 13:28 |
| #22 Roll Alabama Roll. Not the Crimson Tide, it's a Civil War song about the CSS Alabama. When the Alabama’s keel was laid, Roll, Alabama Roll. It was laid in the yard of Jonathan Laird, Roll, Alabama, Roll! It was laid in the yard of Jonathan Laird, Roll, Alabama, Roll! It was laid in the town of Birkenhead Oh Roll, Alabama, Roll. Down the Mersey ways she rolled then, Roll, Alabama, roll. Liverpool fitted her with guns and men Roll, Alabama, roll. And across the “Western” she ploughed her way. Oh, roll, Alabama, roll! |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2009-04-08 13:19 |
| #21 "...start delivering ransom payments spiked with GPS transmitters and anthrax..." |
| Posted by: Uncle Phester 2009-04-08 13:16 |
| #20 For the other *15* ships still in pirate hands, start delivering ransom payments spiked with GPS transmitters and 24-48 hours later fire at will on whatever coordinates show up. |
| Posted by: Chineper Speaking for Boskone5514 2009-04-08 13:05 |
| #19 American crew members aboard a U.S.-flagged ship have regained control of the vessel hijacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia Wednesday, FOX News confirms. One pirate is reportedly in custody. A U.S. official said the status of the other pirates is unknown but they were reported to "be in the water." "All the crew members are trained in security detail in how to deal with piracy," Maersk CEO John Reinhart told reporters. "As merchant vessels we do not carry arms. We have ways to push back, but we do not carry arms." The U.S. Navy ordered its ships to the scene after pirates commandeered the Maersk Alabama cargo ship crewed by 20 U.S. citizens early Wednesday morning. Officials would not say how many Navy ships are on the scene nor would it confirm the nationality of the crew members, but sources told FOX News the Danish-owned ship is operated by U.S. shipping company, Maersk Line Limited. Pentagon Spokesman Bryan Whitman said he has "no information to suggest the 20 crew members of the Maersk Alabama have been harmed by the pirates." During its one communication with the ship, Maersk was told the crew was safe, Reinhart said. He would not release the names of the crew members. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2009-04-08 12:40 |
| #18 The pirates must have one heckuva hideout for the loot. |
| Posted by: Stephen Wilson 2009-04-08 12:37 |
| #17 Capt. Joseph Murphy, an instructor at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy, told The Associated Press the Department of Defense that his son Shane, the second in command on the ship, had called him to say the crew had regained control. "The crew is back in control of the ship," a U.S. official said at midday, speaking on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to speak on the record. "It's reported that one pirate is on board under crew control—the other three were trying to flee," the official said. The status of the other pirates was unknown, the official said, but they were reported to "be in the water." Let's roll. |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2009-04-08 12:32 |
| #16 Being ex Navy, those merchant marines I knew were a rough bunch, threw them overside? GOOD |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2009-04-08 12:27 |
| #15 93rd Brigade strikes again. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2009-04-08 12:27 |
| #14 NAIROBI, Kenya – Pentagon officials said Wednesday that the American crew of a U.S.-flagged cargo ship had retaken control from Somali pirates who hijacked the vessel far off the Horn of Africa. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because information was still preliminary. But they said the hijacked crew had apparently contacted the private company that operates the ship. At a noon news conference, Maersk Line Ltd. CEO John Reinhart said that the company was working to contact families of the crew. "Speculation is a dangerous thing when you're in a fluid environment. I will not confirm that the crew has overtaken this ship," he said. A U.S. official said the crew had retaken control and had one pirate in custody. The official said the status of the other pirates was unknown but they were reported to "be in the water." The official spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter. The ship was carrying emergency relief to Mombasa, Kenya, when it was hijacked, said Peter Beck-Bang, spokesman for the Copenhagen-based container shipping group A.P. Moller-Maersk. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2009-04-08 12:22 |
| #13 Ahoy, mate. |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2009-04-08 12:14 |
| #12 This ships are used by Navy for contract work. I suspect their crews are not run of the mill merchant sailors. |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2009-04-08 12:12 |
| #11 AP... WASHINGTON – The Pentagon says it appears the American crew of a hijacked ship has regained control of the vessel. Pentagon sources spoke on condiiton of anonymity because informatiomn was still preliminary. But sources say the hijacked crew apparently contacted the private shipping company they work for. The shipping company, Maersk, has scheduled a noon press conference in Norfolk, Va. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2009-04-08 12:09 |
| #10 Alert on Fox News as well, no confirmed details available. |
| Posted by: tipover 2009-04-08 11:54 |
| #9 Twitter reports tha CBS is saying military says... crew overpowered pirates, one captured, three tossed overboard |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2009-04-08 11:45 |
| #8 What a disgrace. It's past time to deploy Marine security teams and naval gunners on these ships when they are about to enter lawless waters. I heard this ship was 400 miles out to sea--its a big ocean. Need armed Predators, imo. |
| Posted by: Thealing Borgia 122 2009-04-08 10:24 |
| #7 I think the only thing we can be certain of is he'll blame Bush. That seems to be his answer to everything these days. |
| Posted by: Zorba Craising6734 2009-04-08 10:16 |
| #6 I believe the US Marines have some experience in these matters. Let's see if 0bama uses his resources or pulls a Carter... |
| Posted by: Parabellum 2009-04-08 09:32 |
| #5 Not so sure CF. The ship is a Danish, as in Danish Mooslim cartoons, and owned by A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S, an old, highly successfully, investor owned company. The ship is named the... A l a b a m a. This may drag on for a while. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2009-04-08 09:19 |
| #4 Nah - Barry will act swiftly and decisively to meet whatever the pirate's demand - thus putting a price on the head of any American in a foreign country. |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2009-04-08 09:02 |
| #3 It will be interesting to see if Barry initiates the Jimmy Carter, Tehran hostage negotiation, do nothing protocal. I doubt he remembers the details of the incident. That affair was just over 30 years ago, and no one knows for certain what Barry was actually doing back then, fog of time or fog of something, etc. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2009-04-08 08:53 |
| #2 In Roman times piracy became a real nuisance, finally fed up w/the sea dogs Pompey Magnus put together a crack fleet and basically went to war on them insofar as to burn their home ports. The pirate threat died out w/in about 3 months. |
| Posted by: Andy Ulusoque aka Broadhead6 2009-04-08 08:52 |
| #1 We should declare war on Somalia and clear out the pirate havens. If this means the fishing fleets in the Horn are eliminated too, so be it. It will help restore the balance of the ecosystem in the area. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2009-04-08 08:42 |