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Pirates seized two vessels over the weekend and were towing a German-owned tanker to the Somali coast Sunday, according to maritime officials.
The pirates attacked the German-owned Marida Marguerite about 190 kilometers south of Oman on Saturday, as it was heading from India to Belgium, the EUNval Force (EUNVFOR) said, adding that there is an international crew of 22 onboard, consisting of 19 Indians, 1 Ukrainian and 2 Bangladeshis.
Commander John Harbour, a spokesman for the EUNVFOR, said it is unlikely that military forces will storm the ship, as the officials don't believe the crew all made it to a safe room before the pirates boarded.
Just hours before the seizure, Somali pirates hijacked a Taiwanese fishing boat, the Tai Yuan 227, off the Horn of Africa coast. The boat had 26 crewmembers, including nine mainlanders, according to the International Maritime Bureau, the Xinhua News Agency said.
The vessel's owner temporarily lost contact with the ship when it was north of the Seychelles, on its way to the Maldives, according to Xinhua. After communications were restored Friday, the pirates demanded a ransom.
The two hijackings happened shortly after Russian marines stormed a seized Russian oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden in a raid Thursday, capturing several pirates who had been released because of "imperfections" in international law, the AP quoted Russia's defense ministry as saying Friday.
"If the pirates engage in illegal action on the high seas, the victim is entitled to exercise jurisdiction in line with international law," said Xue Lei, a research associate at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies.
"However, if the pirates are captured within a country's territorial waters, the costal state holds the final jurisdiction right," Xue added.
Pirate attacks have continued despite 35 international warships patrolling the waters off the lawless Somali coast, the AP reported Saturday, adding that 11 suspected Somali pirates were indicted in a US federal court in late March. Additionally, the international community has had a hard time formulating a policy on the detainment and trying of pirate suspects.
Xue said that political unrest in Somalia is the root cause for the surge in piracy.
"The Somali interim government was established in 2004, but the country is still in a state of anarchy due to the government's incompetence to stop conflicts among military groups. Even if the international law could bring pirates to justice, it still can't help the Somali government rebuild order and stop piracy," Xue said.
09 May 2010
Navies of 35 nations to work out anti-piracy plan
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Navies of 35 nations from the Indian Ocean Region will meet next week at Abu Dhabi to debate and chalk out an action plan for anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden.
The three-day meeting will be held under the aegis of the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) initiative of the Indian Navy.
The IONS-2010, the second conclave of the Navy Chiefs of nations from the region including Pakistan, would take place between May 10 and 12 when the mantle of leadership of the naval grouping would pass on to UAE Navy Chief from Indian Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma for a two-year tenure.
"The IONS-2010 will discuss efficiency in anti-piracy operations (in the Gulf of Aden) where the expertise gained by the navies in countering piracy threat will be shared and other means of tackling the menace will be worked out," Navy's Assistant Chief (Foreign Cooperation and Intelligence), Rear Admiral Sudharshan Shrikhande told reporters here today.
Somali pirates seize German tanker
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Heavily-armed Somali pirates have hijacked a Europe-bound German-owned chemical tanker, taking hostage the 22 crewmembers onboard the carrier.
The pirates armed with rocket-propelled grenades and automatic guns stormed the Marida Marguerite, about 120 miles (190 km) south of Oman on Saturday afternoon, as it was making its way from India to Belgium, said the European Union Naval Force.
A spokesman for the anti-piracy task force said a military operation to free the tanker was unlikely, citing concerns about the safety of the crew -- who reportedly consists of 19 Indians, two Bangladeshis and one Ukrainian national.
Pirates currently hold more than 300 hostages taken from ships attacked off East Africa in the last several months.
Also on Saturday, Taiwan's foreign ministry said pirates hijacked a Taiwanese fishing boat off the Somali coast and demanded a ransom for the kidnapped crew.
The ship's owner lost contact with Tai Yuan 227 two days ago as it was headed for the Maldives. Upon the resumption of contact one day later he was told by hijackers to pay a ransom for the crew, the ministry said.
"We hope that the many other boats sailing in the area can stay alert and avoid the pirates from launching an attack at other boats from the Tai Yuan 227," the ministry cautioned.
The Gulf of Aden and water routes off the coast of Somalia remain the hotbed of mounting attacks on passing ships by Somali pirates despite the presence of about 35 international warships patrolling the lawless waters.
Heavily-armed Somali pirates have hijacked a Europe-bound German-owned chemical tanker, taking hostage the 22 crewmembers onboard the carrier.
The pirates armed with rocket-propelled grenades and automatic guns stormed the Marida Marguerite, about 120 miles (190 km) south of Oman on Saturday afternoon, as it was making its way from India to Belgium, said the European Union Naval Force.
A spokesman for the anti-piracy task force said a military operation to free the tanker was unlikely, citing concerns about the safety of the crew -- who reportedly consists of 19 Indians, two Bangladeshis and one Ukrainian national.
Pirates currently hold more than 300 hostages taken from ships attacked off East Africa in the last several months.
Also on Saturday, Taiwan's foreign ministry said pirates hijacked a Taiwanese fishing boat off the Somali coast and demanded a ransom for the kidnapped crew.
The ship's owner lost contact with Tai Yuan 227 two days ago as it was headed for the Maldives. Upon the resumption of contact one day later he was told by hijackers to pay a ransom for the crew, the ministry said.
"We hope that the many other boats sailing in the area can stay alert and avoid the pirates from launching an attack at other boats from the Tai Yuan 227," the ministry cautioned.
The Gulf of Aden and water routes off the coast of Somalia remain the hotbed of mounting attacks on passing ships by Somali pirates despite the presence of about 35 international warships patrolling the lawless waters.
Somali pirates hijack Taiwan fishing boat
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NAIROBI, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Somali pirates have hijacked a Taiwan fishing boat off the Horn of Africa nation coast with 26 crew members, a regional maritime official confirmed on Saturday.
Andrew Mwangura, East Africa coordinator of Seafarers Assistance Program, said the ship's owner lost contact with the Tai Yuan 227 two days ago north of the Seychelles as it headed for the Maldives. "The fishing boat lost contacts two days ago and has 26 crew members from China, Kenya, Taiwanese and Mozambique. We received the reports on Friday and it seemed the hijack took place two or three days ago," Mwangura told Xinhua by telephone.
The International Maritime Bureau has also confirmed the hijack.
Pirate attacks off the Somali coast have continued despite the presence of several warships, deployed by navies of the NATO, the European Union, Russia, China, South Korea and India in the region to protect cargo and cruise ships against piracy.
Kenya's proximity to Somalia prompted insurance companies to hike up their premiums for ships traveling to Kenyan ports to mitigate the increased insecurity.
This led shipping companies to take the longer route around the Cape of Good Hope traveling to the Kenyan ports, with cost of doing business on the Kenyan coast going up by over 40 percent.
To date more than 100 suspects have been transferred to Kenya by the Western warships patrolling the Indian Ocean to combat piracy.
It is only Kenya and the Seychelles in the region that have agreed to take in suspects for prosecution, but both have recently complained about the burden of trying and jailing pirates in their countries.
Punishing pirates
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For the international naval forces off the East African coast, the gloves appear to be coming off in their battle with Somali pirates.
The officers on board the Russian destroyer Marshal Shaposhnikov will have been training for the moment when they surprised Somali pirates and boarded the hijacked oil tanker Moscow University. Ten pirates were captured and one died in the assault. Russian Premier Vladimir Putin immediately demanded medals for the specially trained commandos, which they very probably deserve. Unfortunately what seems to have been an otherwise flawless operation was spoiled by the reported escape of some of the hijackers. It would have been good to take all of these criminals to Russia to face trial.
The European Union’s NavFor admitted perhaps a little grudgingly that this had been “a dramatic rescue.” The tough response of the Russians, prefigured two months ago when the U.S. Navy rescued an American captain held hostage on a pirate boat, comes in stark contrast to the softer touch of the EU navies. The Germans seized a pirate crew in the act of attacking a merchantman, but having disarmed them, released them and their vessel, apparently on orders from Berlin. Because Kenya is now declining to host further trials of capture pirates, the Germans clearly did not want the bother of a prosecution mounted on their own soil. The British were even softer. A Royal Naval vessel was actually close by when a husband and wife were being seized with their yacht by pirates. The Brits did nothing because their rules of engagement forbad them from risking injury to any hostages. The luckless couple were taken into captivity where they remain months later, because along with refusing to risk rescuing them, the British authorities always refuse to facilitate the payment of ransoms.
There was long an argument that using main force against the pirates would provoke them into using greater firepower against their maritime victims. It might also endanger the lives of over 300 hostages currently held by the pirates. This approach now seems to have misread the reality. The pirates were becoming more ruthless anyway while there was little advantage in harming the hostages they hoped to ransom, unless it was a bloody display to encourage payments.
This week Hizbul Islam, which claims a desire to stamp out piracy in Somalia, seized the main pirate base of Haradhere. Other sources allege they wish to share in the spoils. If the latter then it is likely that the pirates could become even more aggressive, with attacks perhaps on naval vessels as well as merchant ships. This may be a new consideration that will cause world naval chiefs to continue to reject a close blockade of the Somali coast, to stop and search all vessels leaving or arriving in these waters.
For many this concentration of naval forces in a given area remains the most obvious strategy rather than having them scattered around the vastness of the open sea, convoying their own nation’s vessels or patrolling on the off chance of finding a pirate vessel at work.
The European Union’s NavFor admitted perhaps a little grudgingly that this had been “a dramatic rescue.” The tough response of the Russians, prefigured two months ago when the U.S. Navy rescued an American captain held hostage on a pirate boat, comes in stark contrast to the softer touch of the EU navies. The Germans seized a pirate crew in the act of attacking a merchantman, but having disarmed them, released them and their vessel, apparently on orders from Berlin. Because Kenya is now declining to host further trials of capture pirates, the Germans clearly did not want the bother of a prosecution mounted on their own soil. The British were even softer. A Royal Naval vessel was actually close by when a husband and wife were being seized with their yacht by pirates. The Brits did nothing because their rules of engagement forbad them from risking injury to any hostages. The luckless couple were taken into captivity where they remain months later, because along with refusing to risk rescuing them, the British authorities always refuse to facilitate the payment of ransoms.
There was long an argument that using main force against the pirates would provoke them into using greater firepower against their maritime victims. It might also endanger the lives of over 300 hostages currently held by the pirates. This approach now seems to have misread the reality. The pirates were becoming more ruthless anyway while there was little advantage in harming the hostages they hoped to ransom, unless it was a bloody display to encourage payments.
This week Hizbul Islam, which claims a desire to stamp out piracy in Somalia, seized the main pirate base of Haradhere. Other sources allege they wish to share in the spoils. If the latter then it is likely that the pirates could become even more aggressive, with attacks perhaps on naval vessels as well as merchant ships. This may be a new consideration that will cause world naval chiefs to continue to reject a close blockade of the Somali coast, to stop and search all vessels leaving or arriving in these waters.
For many this concentration of naval forces in a given area remains the most obvious strategy rather than having them scattered around the vastness of the open sea, convoying their own nation’s vessels or patrolling on the off chance of finding a pirate vessel at work.
Russia mulls construction of 'anti-piracy' ship
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Russia could build at least one special-purpose ship to fight sea piracy in the next several years, the Pacific Fleet commander has said.
Vice Admiral Konstantin Sidenko said "special ships and vessels" were needed to ensure safety at sea and deal with sea piracy, which posed the greatest security threat.
He offered no details about its design or equipment but said that such a ship would be part of the Pacific Fleet, because its area of responsibility includes the Indian Ocean, in particular the Gulf of Aden.
The chief of General Staff of the Armed Forces said on Friday Russia had no plans to beef up its task force in the Gulf of Aden following a pirate attack on a Russian tanker.
"We have no plans to reinforce our deployment," said Gen. Nikolai Makarov, who is also first deputy defense minister.
A SWAT team from the anti-submarine destroyer Marshal Shaposhnikov freed the Moscow University tanker and its 23 crewmembers on Thursday. The ship was hijacked by Somali pirates on Wednesday en route from the Red Sea to China.
One pirate was killed and several injured in a 22-minute operation. The pirates were captured, but later released. Makarov said Russia had "no legal grounds for detaining them" as they could not be prosecuted under international or national law.
A Russian special investigations committee spokesman initially said that all the detained pirates involved in hijacking the tanker would be sent to Moscow to face legal proceedings and prosecution.
The Russian task force comprising the RFS Marshal Shaposhnikov, the MB-37 salvage tug and the Pechenga tanker arrived in the Gulf of Aden on March 29 to join the anti-piracy mission in the region.
Somali pirates carried out a record number of attacks and hijackings in 2009. According to the International Maritime Bureau Piracy Reporting Center, a total of 217 vessels were attacked last year, resulting in 47 hijackings.
MOSCOW, May 8 (RIA Novosti)
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