Pirate attacks off Africa's coast

[Terri]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,575529,00.html Maersk Alabama for the second time

[Terri]

Pirate's attack ship off of Africa's west coast today (nov. 24th) Chief Officer shot and killed. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,576591,00.html?test=latestnews

[Terri]

AP Enterprise: Crew blames capt. for pirate attack
By Associated Press/AP Online
12/2/2009
By JOHN CURRAN

MONTPELIER, Vt. - Richard Phillips, the ship captain toasted as a hero after he was taken captive by Somali pirates, ignored repeated warnings last spring to keep his freighter at least 600 miles off the African coast because of the heightened risk of attack, some members of his crew now allege.

Records obtained by The Associated Press show that maritime safety groups issued at least seven such warnings in the days before outlaws boarded the Maersk Alabama about 380 miles off the shore of Somalia.

A piracy expert and the captain's second-in-command say Phillips had the prerogative to heed the warnings or not. But some crew members - including the chief engineer, the helmsman and the navigator - say he was negligent not to change course after learning of the pirate activity.

"If you go to the grocery store and eight people get mugged on that street, wouldn't you go a different way?" said the ship's navigator, Ken Quinn, of Tampa, Fla.

Sailing beyond the 600-mile threshold would have added more than a day to the Alabama's voyage to Mombasa, Kenya, and used extra fuel, according to the ship's previous captain, who said Phillips had years of experience sailing in those dangerous waters.

Four of the 20 crew members told the AP that they blame Phillips for the hijacking.

"He caused this, and we all know it," said chief engineer Mike Perry of Riverview, Fla. "All the Alabama crew knows about it."

Reached by telephone at his home in Underhill, Vt., Phillips said he could not answer every "spurious accusation" and that he expected such criticism.

"But I don't wish to say anything. I want you to report that I had no comment," he said.

One of the four crew members who spoke to the AP is part of a lawsuit filed against Maersk Line Ltd. alleging the company was negligent in sending the ship into treacherous waters without more protection. The other members are not involved in any legal action related to the hijacking.

A separate complaint has also been filed against Phillips with the U.S. Coast Guard.

Captain Shane Murphy of Plymouth, Mass., who was second-in-command during the siege, defended Phillips.

"If he was warned to stay off a certain distance and he stayed closer, I'm sure he thought he had a reason for doing it and felt like he was justified in it," Murphy said. "I don't think he was negligent. Maybe just stubborn."

Maersk Line officials would not comment on the advisories or on Phillips' handling of them, citing the pending legal cases.

Company spokesman Kevin Speers would say only that the Maersk Alabama operated in "high-risk waters quite frequently, and that is part of the considerations that we take in putting together vessel security plans."

SecureWest International, a maritime security organization that issued several of the advisories, would not respond to requests for comment.

The AP obtained copies of the advisories from a fifth crew member who did not want to be interviewed on the record.

The Alabama's crew was apparently unaware of the advisories during the April 8 attack and the five days Phillips was held hostage in a lifeboat by three pirates. Navy SEAL sharpshooters freed him by killing the men.

Crew members found the warnings in the ship's computer system when the Alabama returned to sea, Perry said.

On March 24, SecureWest warned of pirate attacks east of Somalia that had taken place more than 500 nautical miles offshore. It advised ships to "consider maintaining a distance of more than 600 nautical miles from the coastline."

On April 1, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Organization - a joint military command that coordinates anti-piracy efforts around the Horn of Africa - reported a recent passenger ship hijacking, gave the longitude and latitude of where it happened, and repeated the 600-mile recommendation in an e-mail addressed to "Maersk Alabama - Master."

Over the next six days, SecureWest repeated the recommendation in an e-mail to the Alabama that reported an April 2 attack. The company also sent a warning to more than a dozen ships in the region about an unidentified container vessel being attacked and reported that a German-owned container ship had also been hijacked.

"The Coalition Forces would like to reiterate that, despite increased naval presence in the region, ships and aircraft are unlikely to be close enough to provide support to vessels under attack," SecureWest warned on April 7.

The same day, SecureWest reported a "suspicious approach" of three skiffs to an unidentified vessel in the Indian Ocean. A day later, it sent out word of the Alabama's attack, warning vessels in the region to be careful.

"The advisories are fairly general," said piracy expert Derek Reveron, professor of national security affairs at the Naval War College, in Newport, R.I. "It's a big ocean. To stay 600 miles away, it's kind of hard to do, at some point. There's a limit to what they could reasonably do."

Reveron says it's the skipper's purview to heed such warnings or ignore them.

When the Alabama was at sea, Quinn said he plotted the positions of recent pirate attacks, "and they were right on our course line. Phillips sailed us right through the middle of all of that."

The ship could have gone another 100 miles out, "and it would've taken us out of the localized area where all the pirates were. That's what they were trying to tell us, to stay away from there," Quinn said.

The ship's helmsman, Abu Tasir Mohammed Reza, of West Hartford, Conn., said he lost respect for Phillips once he found out about the warnings.

"He didn't follow those warnings. He did not realize that something is coming ahead. He did not take it seriously. He did not change the course," Reza said.

During his captivity, Phillips was initially reported to have offered himself as a hostage in exchange for his crew's safety. In an Oct. 19 interview with AP, he said that was not true and insisted he never volunteered, as crew members and his family reported at the time.

Phillips, 54, said he was already a hostage when he struck a deal with the pirates to trade him for their leader, who had been taken by the Maersk Alabama's crew. The pirates reneged, he said.

But crew members say the incident could have been avoided entirely.

"I put faith in the fact that we were going to take some kind of evasive action," said John Cronan, of Merion, Pa., an engineer who has sued for injuries to his left knee and ankle. "I thought it was a given that we would do the best we could given our capabilities to get out of the danger zone. The prudent sailor avoids the hurricane instead of driving through it."

Phillips, a 30-year merchant marine known as a no-nonsense skipper at sea, would not address the topic of the warnings when contacted.

"Bottom line, it was the captain's call," said Capt. Larry Aasheim, whom Phillips had relieved as skipper about 10 days before the hijacking.

Aasheim, of Virginia Beach, Va., discussed the piracy threat with Phillips when he turned over command. He says Phillips may have been trying to save fuel and time in not heeding the 600-mile recommendation.

"I told him there are advisories out recommending that vessels stay off an increased distance. But he's been on that run for a couple of years. If he increased the distance to 600 miles, it adds 1 1/2 days of transit time and a lot of fuel. You've got to think about that," he said.

A service of YellowBrix, Inc.





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[Mark (Voodoo Acrobat)]

There is the whole "adds a 1 1/2 days of transit time and a lot of fuel" thing. A merchant skipper is beholding to the company he pilots for. Time is money. Not to mention crew wages, food, etc. I can imagine skippers are under some pressure to make port as efficiently as possible.

[Terri]

Totally agree on the Master of the ship .... beholding to the company. Although when it comes down to safety and live's of the crew, he should stand his ground or walk. I would imagine in this economy the pressure is tremendous.

[Terri]

NEWS AND NOTES

Blue Water Sailing
December 9, 2009




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EU issues pirate warning to lone French yachtsman


"The region is considered a hotbed for piracy and is considered too dangerous for lone yachtsmen," EUNAVFOR said in a statement, after one of its vessels, the Dutch warship HNLMS Evertsen made contact Monday with the sailor.


"Because his engine and auto steering gear had already broken down and he had no money left -- after being robbed in Aden -- to buy food and stores, a French officer ... strongly advised him to return to Djibouti and have second thoughts on his planned journey," the statement said.


It said the officer "was particularly motivated to have the sailor change his mind" because he had been involved in a rescue operation to free captives held on a French yacht, in which one of the hostages died.


The sailor finally turned his yacht toward Djibouti.


The world's naval powers last year deployed warships in the Gulf of Aden in an attempt to curb attacks by ransom-hunting pirates that were seen as a threat to one of the globe's most crucial maritime trade routes.


Pirates have since shifted their focus to the wider Indian Ocean, a huge area much more difficult to patrol, and have ventured as far as the Seychelles and beyond.

From: MSN.com


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[Terri]

Ransom Deal Blocked for Somali Hostages Paul and Rachel Chandler

The British couple kidnapped by Somali pirates six weeks ago were on the verge of being freed for a 100,000 (GBP) ransom when the government blocked the deal, according to a story in the Guardian UK Observer.

The money to release Paul and Rachel Chandler, taken hostage from their yacht Lynn Rival on October 23, had been agreed by a British negotiator two weeks ago. Foreign Office officials rejected the breakthrough, saying that they would not allow payments to hostage-takers. The disclosure will increase the anguish for relatives of the Chandlers, after concern that Britain's policy of not talking to kidnappers will endanger their lives. Photo: 'Paul and Rachel Chandler: kidnapped on 23 October' /AP.. From: www.guardian. co.uk. Read the whole story at BWS.com.

[Terri]

Danish Forces Storm Somali Pirate Ship, Free 25 People On Board
Friday , February 05, 2010

NAIROBI, Kenya —

Danish special forces stormed a ship captured by armed Somali pirates Friday and freed the 25 crew on board, marking the first time a warship has intervened during a hijacking, naval spokesmen said.

After the vessel Ariella sent out a distress signal early Friday, the Danish warship Absalon sent a helicopter to confirm the presence of pirates, and communicated with the crew to ensure they were in a safe location, said Cmdr. John Harbour, spokesman for the European Union Naval Force.

"Once NATO were absolutely sure that the crew onboard were safe and not going to be caught up in any cross fire, the decision was made to send in the specialist teams," said Lt. Col. Wolfgang Schmidt, a spokesman for NATO's Lisbon-based Joint Command.

Ten Danish special forces aboard the Absalon approached the Ariella in an inflatable dinghy, he said. The forces scaled the side of the ship and freed the 25 crew, who had locked themselves in a secure room, and continued to search the vessel for the pirates.
In the meantime, sailors from the nearby Russian Navy ship Neustrashimyy boarded and detained pirates aboard a second skiff, said Schmidt.

Harbour praised the NATO forces for their fast reaction and coordination with other forces in the area.

"There's been many instances where there's been excellent cooperation and three, four or even five nations have helped deter a pirate attack," he said. But, he added: "This is the first where a warship has been able to send forces to stop a hijacking while it was in progress."
Warships typically do not intervene in hijackings because of the danger that crews may be hit by crossfire. Forces were able to intervene 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.

Denmark rarely releases information on operations carried out by its elite forces, but the storming of the ship may have been carried out by the country's elite Frogman Corps, which were part of a NATO deployment.

"There is an operation going on down there and we're involved. It is still going on right now," Pernielle Kroer, spokeswoman for the Danish Navy told The Associated Press.

[Terri]

U.K. Couple Kidnapped by Pirates May Be Released Soon
Friday , March 05, 2010


http://www.foxnews. com/story/ 0,2933,588108, 00.html?test= latestnews


NAIROBI, Kenya —
A retired British couple snatched last year from their sailboat by pirates could be released within weeks as Somali communities inside and outside the East African country work for their freedom, a Somali official said Friday.

Paul and Rachel Chandler were forced by pirates off their 38-foot yacht, the Lynn Rival, and onto an open skiff in October as they headed to Tanzania. Soon after, their pirate captors demanded $7 million to release the Chandlers. Britain's government refuses to pay ransoms to kidnappers.

SLIDESHOW: British Couple Kidnapped by Pirates

Mohamed Omar Dalha, the deputy speaker of Somalia's parliament, told The Associated Press that Somali communities inside and outside the chaos-wracked country have been working to negotiate the "unconditional release" of the Chandlers. Dalha said Friday that he was hopeful they would be released within two weeks.

"We are hopeful that the British couple will be released as soon as possible without condition," he said.

It is extremely unusual for pirates to release hostages without being paid ransom money — or what pirates sometimes label their "expenses" for costs incurred while holding hostages. Nevertheless, Dalha said he was discouraging that any ransom be paid, to discourage future hostage-taking.

The Chandlers are among about 130 sailors held hostage in Somalia, which has not had a stable government since warlords overthrew longtime dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.
In the latest pirate attack, the EU Naval Force said it intercepted a pirate group of one mothership and two skiffs early Friday. The pirates earlier attacked a French vessel that had private security on board who repelled the assault.

An EU Naval Force helicopter tracked down the pirates and watched them throw a rocket launcher, grappling hooks and fuel barrels into the ocean. The EU Naval Force said it destroyed the mothership and one skiff and took 11 pirates into custody.

Pirate attacks have been increasing off East Africa the last several years. Pirates attacked ships 217 times in 2009, according to the International Maritime Bureau. That was up from 111 attacks in 2008.

Last year, the average ransom was around $2 million, according to piracy expert Roger Middleton of the British think tank Chatham House. This year, two ransoms paid were around $3 million and $7 million, he said, citing industry officials

[Terri]

Fox News The death comes amid fears that increasingly aggressive pirates and the growing use of armed private security contractors onboard vessels could fuel increased violence on the high seas.


NAIROBI, Kenya -- In the first killing of its kind, private security contractors shot dead a Somali pirate in a clash that left two skiffs riddled with bullet holes, officials said Wednesday.



The killing raises questions over who has jurisdiction over a growing army of armed guards on merchant ships flying flags from many nations.



There's currently no regulation of private security onboard ships, no guidelines about who is responsible in case of an attack, and no industrywide standards, said piracy expert Roger Middleton from the British think tank Chatham House.



"There's no guarantee of the quality of individuals you are going to get," said Middleton. "If you're a shipping company, that could be legally concerning. It's also concerning to everyone if you have individuals with guns and not much oversight out on the seas."

The exact circumstances of Tuesday's shooting are unclear, but the European Union Naval Force said guards were onboard the Panama-flagged MV Almezaan when a pirate group approached it twice. On the second approach, there was a shoot-out between the guards and the pirates.


An EU Naval Force frigate was dispatched to the scene and launched a helicopter that located the pirates. Seven pirates were found, including one who died from small-caliber gunshot wounds, indicating he had been shot by the detachment onboard the Almezaan, and not by the helicopter gunship, said Cmdr. John Harbour, the EU Naval Force spokesman.



The pirates had two small skiffs and a larger ship -- a whaler -- believed to be a mothership for food and fuel.



"Once the skiffs and the whaler had been intercepted it was discovered that one of them contained a dead body that had sustained several small-caliber bullet impacts. Numerous bullet impacts were also visible on the skiffs and bullet casings as well as arms and munition of different caliber were found aboard," said a statement from the Spanish Ministry of Defense.



Spanish forces aboard the warship Navarra arrested the six remaining pirates, took custody of the pirate's body and sunk the larger boat, the ministry said. Spain planned to give the body to the Somali government and transfer the suspects to Kenya or the Seychelles for prosecution if the cargo ship's crew identified the detainees as their attackers.



Legal experts said there is no consensus on who is responsible for investigating the incident, and there are several possibilities: Panama, whose flag the Almezaan flies; the United Arab Emirates, where the ship's owners are based; or the nation which the security contractors come from, which has not yet been made public.



"This will be scrutinized very closely," said Arvinder Sambei, a legal consultant for the U.N.'s anti-piracy program. "There's always been concern about these (private security) companies. Who are they responsible to? ... The bottom line is somebody has been killed and someone has to give an accounting of that."



So far, laws governing private security contractors have generally reacted to specific abuses rather than attempting to prevent such abuses, said Patrick Cullen, an international relations lecturer at the Barcelona-based International Politics Institute and the co-author of an upcoming book on private maritime security companies.



"Regulating maritime security companies is a very gray area," he said.

Violent confrontations between ships and pirates are on the rise. Crews are becoming adept at repelling attacks by pirates and many more ship owners are using private security guards. Pirates are becoming more aggressive in response, shooting firearms and firing rocket-propelled grenades at ships to try to intimidate captains into stopping.



The International Maritime Bureau says 39 ships were fired off Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden in 2008, but that number increased to 114 ships by 2009. Earlier this month there were four separate shoot-outs in a single day between pirates, security guards and military personnel aboard commercial vessels.



Several organizations, including the International Maritime Bureau, have expressed fears that the use of armed security contractors could encourage pirates to be more violent in their approach.



In Somali waters, it is often difficult to distinguish between pirates and fishermen until the boats are very close. Maritime experts have expressed fears that jittery security guards could accidentally open fire on ordinary Somalis.



Pirate attacks have not declined despite patrols by dozens of warships off the Somali coast. The amount of ocean to patrol is too vast to protect every ship and pirates have responded to the increased naval presence by moving attacks farther out to sea.



Experts say piracy is just one symptom of the general collapse of law and order in the failed state of Somalia, which has not had a functioning government in 19 years. They say attacks on shipping will continue as long as there is no central government capable of taking on the well-armed and well-paid pirate gangs.

[Terri]

I'm not sure how many pirates will have to be killed before the rest get the hint. They are very desperate and probably willing to risk it all, which isn't much. Haven't heard much about the couple they have that were cruising in the area. Thought they were going to release them or read as much a couple of months ago.

[Mark (Voodoo Acrobat)]

The root cause is that Somalia has no government. Just by definition, it would seem the cure would be to get a government in there. The U.S. used to be pretty good at "installing" governments, but we're supposed to be out of that business now. Pity. I guess it'll have to wait until one of their neighboring countries decides it's strong enough to overrun them and stretch their borders. Beachfront property is hard to come by nowadays.

It's only a matter of time before some trigger-happy seagoing mercenary shoots up a boatload of fishermen. I'm not qualified to speak on the legalities and liabilities that situation will open up, but I'm guessing it won't be pretty.

[Terri]

US navy nabs pirate suspects near Seychelles
1 hr 46 mins ago

WASHINGTON (AFP) – A US warship operating in the Indian Ocean captured five suspected pirates Thursday after an exchange of gunfire in international waters near the Seychelles, the Pentagon said.
The frigate USS Nicholas took the piracy suspects into custody after the warship sank a skiff, and confiscated a suspected mother ship, said a statement from US Naval Forces.
"While operating west of the Seychelles in international waters, Nicholas reported taking fire at 12:27 am local time from a suspected pirate skiff and returned fire before commencing pursuit of the vessel until the disabled skiff stopped," the statement said.
"At 1:59 am personnel from Nicholas boarded the disabled skiff and detained three personnel. The boarding team found ammunition and multiple cans of fuel on board."
After taking the suspected pirates on board, the Nicholas sank the disabled skiff and captured two additional suspected pirates on the confiscated mother ship.
"The suspected pirates will remain in US custody on board Nicholas until a determination is made regarding their disposition, " the statement said.
The lifting of the winter monsoon in the region has spurred a fresh spate of attacks by pirates able to venture hundreds of miles from their bases and approach their prey on relatively calm seas.
The Seychelles economy relies heavily on tuna fishing and tourism and the country has had several ships hijacked since 2008.
In a separate incident, six Seychellois fishermen rescued from Somali pirates were returned home Wednesday after three days of high-seas drama which saw the Seychelles coastguard sink several pirate boats.