01 October 2010

TPDF fights off pirates as oil industry’s fears mount

Link to Article

By The Citizen Reporter
Tanzania People’s Defence Forces (TPDF) navy personnel have repulsed three attacks in recent days by suspected Somali terrorists, off the coast of Mtwara, which have fuelled fears over the safety of oil exploration teams in southern Tanzania.

The security scare in Tanzanian waters was heightened yesterday morning, when the pirates tried to attack a TPDF boat; in another indication that the danger posed by armed Somali gangs operating along the eastern African coastline is mounting.

Officials confirmed that the other two incidents occurred last weekend, with the pirates appearing to have targeted the TPDF boat and a ship being used in oil exploration.

The TPDF director of Information and Public Relations, Lieutenant Colonel Kapambala Mgawe, told The Citizen yesterday that the navy had overpowered the pirates, but most of them managed to escape.

He said that at around 10am, the pirates had attempted to hijack the oil exploration ship, which had some TPDF personnel on board.
 “They (pirates) fired at the ship not knowing that there were soldiers in it, and retaliated and overpowering the attackers. The pirates then sped off on realising that they were no match for our well trained personnel,” he said.

 “We are glad that no one was injured in the incident,” he said.

On Sunday, another group of pirates had attacked the TPDF boat and the oil exploration ship. Lt-Col Mgawe said the TDPF soldiers managed to capture one suspect.

“After interrogation, we established that he was not a Tanzanian, though he has roots in this country, as one of his parents was born here. But he was born in Somalia and is a Somali citizen,” said Lt-Col Mgawe.

The pirate seized by the TPDF had been abandoned by his accomplices, as they fled the superior power from the navy. The suspect was being interrogated to gather more information from him on his group’s movements, the senior officer said.

“Interrogation in such a serious crime cannot be completed within a day or two. We are still questioning him to establish where they have been hiding,” he said. The aim was to establish whether the pirates might have a base near the area.

“We think they might have a big ship, which they use as their base to plan and execute the attacks... they cannot manage to come all the way from Somalia on the small boats they use in the attacks.”
While Lt-Col Mgawe told The Citizen that no one was injured during the confrontation, other sources said that two soldiers were hurt in the gunfight.

“I think they did not expect to encounter our soldiers in the oil exploration vessel. They had thought they would easily overpower the crew,” he said.
Initially, the TPDF official said, they had suspected that the captured man was a Tanzanian bandit.
 “There are small groups of Tanzanians engaged in banditry in the ocean,” he added.

A TPDF source, who declined to be named because he is not a military spokesman, said an oil exploration company had asked for security assistance.
According to police reports, the Sunday incident occurred about 70 nautical miles, off the Mtwara coast in southern Tanzania, in an area where the London-based, Africa-focused oil and gas firm, Ophir Energy, has an exploration vessel.

Mtwara Regional Police Commander Steven Nuyuya had been quoted in media reports, as saying that a Somali pirate boat opened heavy fire on a Tanzanian navy vessel, which was badly damaged, with at least 50 bullet holes.

“We cannot rule out the possibility that the Somali pirates could have been planning to kidnap expatriate workers taking part in oil exploration,” Commander Buyuya said.

Following the clash, navy and police boats were dispatched to pursue the pirate boat and managed to arrest a suspect, who was then taken to Dar es Salaam for questioning.

Tanzania has attracted increased oil exploration interest in recent years. The Ophir Energy vessel was anchored at Mtwara Port, while police and TPDF soldiers continued to patrol the area.

In May, the government reported that it had agreed to prosecute Somali pirates in response to a European Union appeal to other nations in the region to share the financial and security burden with Kenya and the Seychelles.

Until now, only Kenya has shouldered the burden of prosecuting sea bandits seized by foreign navies patrolling the Gulf of Aden’s busy shipping lanes, which link Europe with Africa and Asia.

Earlier this month, the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF), General Davis Mwamunyange, called for close collaboration among African countries to curb the increasing wave of piracy in the Indian Ocean.

Gen Mwamunyange said the problem could be easily combated if only the African countries would join hands.

“We are ready to combat the piracy. However, it’s difficult to end the problem in the waters if we are left to work alone without cooperation from our neighbours, and the whole African Union,” said the defence chief said.

No comments: