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Africa Horn
Danish forces free ship captured by pirates
2010-02-06
Followup.
Ay-Pee article. Rest at link. I thought this was funny:
He dispatched a team from Denmark's elite Frogmen unit. They bounced across the waves in a dinghy and scaled the sides of the cargo ship using grappling hooks. They secured the bridge, released the crew and then launched an hours-long search for the pirate the crew had seen. They found no one.
Captain, you'll find no pirates aboard this vessel.
"I don't know if he jumped overboard when he saw the helicopter or later when he saw the special forces," Termansen said. "We searched the ship for hours and didn't find anybody."
"Where's Ryker's weight belt?"
Cmdr. Mikael Bill, head of the Danish Admiralty in western Denmark, said he did not believe there were any pirates onboard the Antigua and Barbuda-flagged ship when the special forces arrived.
"It jumped overboard."
"It is our clear understanding that there were no hijackers on board but our helicopter had deterred an action," he said.
"Great. The paperwork's easier that way."
Posted by:gorb

#10  #9 Were skeggöxes employed?

Had Lee employed a brigade armed with skeggöxes Jim, you and I would be congressmen and senators today.
Posted by: Besoeker   2010-02-06 19:33  

#9  Were skeggöxes employed?

Damn that's a neat can opener, for helmets, armor and such.
Posted by: Redneck Jim   2010-02-06 18:54  

#8  They need to eradicate them at the source.
Posted by john frum

This would mean bombing, straffing coastal villages, ground assaults, raids and ambushes, boat and property seizures, hordes of media coverage. This is not Smith's Rhodesia. This is an inpoverished, racially inappropriate target audience. Move along now. Pirates have rights too.
Posted by: Besoeker   2010-02-06 08:48  

#7  The Ariella's distress call was heard by the Indian warship Tabar, which passed it on to a French plane. The plane confirmed the presence of the pirates on deck, said Cmdr. John Harbour, spokesman for the European Union Naval Force. The Absalon, which was under NATO command, sent a helicopter to investigate.

At least the various naval forces are coordinating their activities. They're just stomping on the roaches scampering in the light. They need to eradicate them at the source.
Posted by: john frum   2010-02-06 08:36  

#6  Were skeggöxes employed?
Posted by: g(r)omgoru   2010-02-06 02:40  

#5  "Warships typically do not intervene in hijackings because crews may be hit by crossfire."

Could that argument not be applied to almost any confrontational situation? The real reason is human rights bull**** which is geared to protect the rights of armed criminals. That and a total lack of adult 'whole system' thinking and arguing from governments.
Posted by: Bulldog   2010-02-06 02:22  

#4  Warships typically do not intervene in hijackings because crews may be hit by crossfire.

In related news, Task Force 151 spokesman was pleased to announced the arrival of newly established Rapid Action Battalion Marines to combat the scourge of piracy...
Posted by: Pstanley   2010-02-06 02:17  

#3  Most interesting paragraph:

Warships typically do not intervene in hijackings because crews may be hit by crossfire. Forces intervened in this case because the ship had registered with naval authorities, was traveling along a recommended transit corridor and was part of a group transit, ensuring the ships had a helicopter within 30 minutes' reaction time, Harbour said.
Posted by: gromky   2010-02-06 01:46  

#2  Ahem. One more time: Here's the link.
Posted by: gorb   2010-02-06 01:01  

#1  Whoops! Here's the link.
Posted by: gorb   2010-02-06 01:00  

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