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| Africa Horn | ||
| Maersk Alabama reaches Kenya; pirate lifeboat drifts toward land | ||
| 2009-04-12 | ||
| MOMBASA, Kenya (Reuters) - A U.S.-flagged ship that was seized by Somali pirates arrived safely in the Kenyan port of Mombasa on Saturday, as a Somali mediator headed to sea to try to secure the release of the ship's American captain. "The captain is a hero," one crew member shouted from the 17,000-ton Maersk Alabama container ship as it docked. "He saved our lives by giving himself up." The ship, under the command of Richard Phillips, was attacked by gunmen far out in the Indian Ocean on Wednesday but its 20 American crew apparently fought off the hijackers and regained control of the freighter. Phillips was taken hostage and is being held captive on a drifting lifeboat by the gang of four pirates who want $2 million ransom for him, as well as safe passage. Relatives said Phillips had volunteered to join the pirates in their lifeboat in exchange for the safety of his crew. At one point, he tried to escape by jumping overboard but "didn't get very far," a U.S. official said. Three U.S. warships were in the area around the lifeboat. A U.S. military official who spoke on condition of anonymity said crew members on the destroyer USS Bainbridge saw Phillips on Friday from a distance of several hundred yards (meters), moving and talking aboard the boat after his failed escape. CNN said on Saturday the Bainbridge sent a small boat to approach the lifeboat to open communication, but the pirates responded with gunfire. The Navy personnel then retreated. NBC television and CBS radio said the lifeboat had drifted to within 20 miles of the Somali coast, and that U.S. military officials feared that if the craft reached the shore, the pirates might escape with their hostage on land. Phillips is just one of about 270 hostages from a variety of countries being held by Somali pirates preying on the busy sea-lanes of the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. Yet the Maersk Alabama has captured world attention because Phillips is the first U.S. citizen seized and his crew was able to regain control of the ship. "Once again, it has taken American involvement to get world powers really interested," said a diplomat who tracks Somalia from Nairobi.
The mediator took to sea in a boat but it was unclear how he would reach the pirates. He speaks English and aimed to bridge the language gap between the pirates and the U.S. side. "The man took a boat but how he will spot the lifeboat is the question," said Aweys Ali Said, head of the local Galkayo region's local authority. "The elders want the captain to be released and the pirates to come home safely. But I understand, the pirates need a ransom, come what may. The gang holding Phillips remained defiant. "We will defend ourselves if attacked," one told Reuters by satellite phone. | ||
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #14 IIRC DRUDGEREPORT > PHILIPPS RESCUE [vee USN Seals] > PIRATES VOW REVENGE AGZ THE USA AND FRANCE. Also IIRC, ala STRATEGYPAGE, the PYR-I-I-ITES + Radical Islam had warned Kenya's Govt. not to interefere wid their Gunmen [read, Pirate, etc. Activities]. IOW, KENYA + SOMALI PIRATE ENCLAVES > AKIN TO PORT ROYAL, TOBAGO, + OTHER PIRATE-CONTROLLED CITIES + LANDS IN HISTORY. The USA = BRITAIN-EUROS as per efforts to contain or destroy these pirate groups [Recall Captain Kidd, Henry Morgan,etal.]. THEY really Really REALLY R-E-A-L-L-Y REEEEAAAALLLLYYY RRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEE EEEEEEEEELLLLLYYYY, D *** YOU, WANT THE BAMMER = OWG USSA/USR of Amerika TO INVADE AFRICA???? |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2009-04-12 20:18 |
| #13 Somalia is a failed state. There is no move afoot to try to make it a real state, with full responsibilities, etc etc. Actually, there are several factions trying to make their little respective pieces of Somalia into real states. And some of these factions are inimical to our interests. |
| Posted by: Thing From Snowy Mountain 2009-04-12 18:09 |
| #12 "#9 Caroline speaks as though she duplicated Uncle Ted's courses. Hope she got a better grade in swimming class." Teddy's swimming was just fine, Steve. It was his passenger who flunked. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2009-04-12 13:31 |
| #11 Somalia is a failed state. There is no move afoot to try to make it a real state, with full responsibilities, etc etc. Ya wanna adopt this place, too? You willing to sink billions that YOU DO NOT HAVE into this traditionally unruly place? You do not make deals with pirates. You do what is necessary to personally hurt them so they leave you alone. If they and the people want to change, they know where to call, and you can work together. Barring that, you make the price of messing with ocean commerce and shipping so high that they will leave you alone. You do not pay the equivalent of protection money to some pirate a$$hole. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2009-04-12 12:31 |
| #10 I think Galrahn has a point. I don't want to wake up tomorrow with an alliance with the islamic courts faction. |
| Posted by: Thing From Snowy Mountain 2009-04-12 11:51 |
| #9 Caroline speaks as though she duplicated Uncle Ted's courses. Hope she got a better grade in swimming class. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2009-04-12 11:23 |
| #8 Galrahn is a former Naval officer. I've followed his blog for a while. It's superb and I recommend it highly. |
| Posted by: Steve White 2009-04-12 10:39 |
| #7 The Maersk Alabama was carrying food aid for the region. It is now delivered to port in Kenya. Where is it supposed to go from there? Staying in Kenya? Somalia? Sudan? Or Uganda/Congo/Central Africa? |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2009-04-12 10:39 |
| #6 Galrahn writes as if he learned something while he was at his Ivy League college. Caroline speaks as though she duplicated Uncle Ted's courses. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2009-04-12 09:09 |
| #5 Caroline Kennedy that is. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2009-04-12 08:25 |
| #4 Nimble, Caroline speaks like someone who went to an Ivy League school - by definition (she did go to one.) |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2009-04-12 08:24 |
| #3 Galrahn writes as if he went to an Ivy League school. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2009-04-12 06:09 |
| #2 A longer piece from Galrahn about the problem here. |
| Posted by: Steve White 2009-04-12 01:15 |
#1 Galrahn at Information Dissemination has an interesting take on the Maersk Alabama story:What if we support a government strong enough to remove piracy, but too weak to do anything about the terrorism cells? Piracy is what has the international community involved in the problems of Somalia right now, if that goes away, we are left with the bigger threat to our national interests and no one internationally to help. I'm not sure we know who we want to work with in Pak-land, but he's right about Somalia: there is literally no one to work with. Co-opt the pirates? Not likely. But it's an interesting thought that they're more desirable than Sheik Ahmed ... |
| Posted by: Steve White 2009-04-12 01:09 |