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>>>> NEWS - NEWS - NEWS
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Last updated 20 Nov 2008 -
Australia Time
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Ships to take the long way round - price of goods will rise
A Norwegian shipping firm has ordered its vessels
to avoid the waters off the Horn of Africa and
criticized governments for failing to curb a wave
of piracy after Somalia-based hijackers seized
their largest prize to date. The decision by the
maritime company Odfjell SE means its 90-plus
ships will take the additional time and expense
to sail around the southern tip of Africa instead
of going through the Suez Canal, a shortcut for
mariners for nearly a century and a half.
"It is a huge step, but what we have seen
is that the piracy activity in the area has increased,"
the company's president, Terje Storeng, told CNN.
"We have thought about the crew on board
the ships and we don't want them to be exposed
to this risk of being hijacked any longer."
Storeng said in a statement the company will still
sail through the Gulf of Aden only if explicitly
committed to doing so by existing contracts.
The Gulf of Aden, which lies between the Horn
of Africa and the Arabian peninsula, is the gateway
to the southern Red Sea, which is linked to the
Mediterranean by the Suez Canal. Going around
the Cape of Good Hope would add thousands of kilometers
to a voyage from the Middle East to Europe or
North America.
The announcement followed Monday's news that the
300,000-metric-ton oil tanker Sirius Star was
captured by pirates in the Indian Ocean over the
weekend. The hijacking took place more than 720
km (450 miles) off the Kenyan port of Mombasa,
well south of the zone patrolled by international
warships in an effort to clamp down on the pirates.
"This is the furthest out to sea that we've
seen any attack, so it's concerning to us,"
Lt. Nathan Christensen, a U.S. Navy spokesman
in Bahrain, told CNN. "The pirates are certainly
expanding their ability to attack ships out to
sea."
But the U.S.-led naval mission that patrols the
Horn of Africa said successful attacks have decreased
in recent weeks. Russian and British warships
have fended off pirate attacks on commercial shipping
in the past week, authorities in those countries
have reported.
Some experts say the area is too vast to be successfully
patrolled by government or military ships, and
that pirates take advantage of it.
(what a load of crap
- are they telling us that five or so navies can't
stop one mob of scruffy pirates in one location,
no matter how large???? How about simply going
to their bases and blowing them off the face of
the earth.
IF THE OFFICIAL FORCES CAN'T DO IT - SEND IN THE
MERCENARIES.)
Who are the pirates off Somalia's coast?
Source: Reuters
Nov 18 (Reuters) - The following are details of
the pirates who hijacked a Saudi supertanker with
a $100 million oil cargo, the boldest such attack
yet and the culmination of several years' increasing
activity. * HOW DOES IT WORK? -- The pirates live
on "mother ships", storing arms, fuel
and other supplies on board. They catch target
vessels using high-speed boats, heavily-armed
men boarding with rope ladders. -- Intelligence
sources say three trawlers in the Gulf of Aden
are believed to be pirate "mother ships".
-- Around three speedboats may be used in an attack,
each carrying six to 10 men armed with AK-47 assault
rifles and sometimes rocket-propelled grenades.
* MONEY EARNED: -- Pirates often treat hostages
well in the hope of hefty ransoms. Most captured
ships have brought ransom payments of more than
$10,000 and more recently much more. The larger
vessels captured in the busy shipping lanes of
the Gulf of Aden fetch on average a ransom of
$2m. -- The money could be invested in trafficking
khat, a mild narcotic leaf that is very popular
in the region. Banned in many Western countries,
khat is a flowering plant that is native to east
Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. Users get a
mild amphetamine-like high. -- Residents of Garowe
and Bosasso, Puntland's other main town, say most
of the hijackers are well known as the wealthy
pirates have attained near-celebrity status in
the area. -- They have built palatial beach villas
and other buildings, cruising around in expensive
cars and marrying additional wives. * WHO ARE
THE PIRATES? -- Men from the various clans who
fought for the Somali warlords can supply the
guns and military might. Men are also needed to
operate technical hardware such as satellite phones
and GPS. Fishermen are also useful because they
know the sea. * THE CONSEQUENCES: -- Pirates have
driven up insurance costs, forced some ships to
go round South Africa instead of through the Suez
Canal. They have secured an estimated $18-$30
million in ransom by October, according to British
think-tank Chatham House, for the release of crews
and ships. * ORIGINS OF PIRACY OFF SOMALIA: --
Somalia has said that piracy was merely a symptom
of a wider problem, illegal fishing and dumping.
The collapse of the Somali government in 1991
heralded the opening of fishing floodgates and
foreign fishing vessels from all corners of the
world invaded the area with the sole aim of plundering
Somalia's marine resources. -- Militia were boarding
boats on initially justifiable grounds to protect
their waters from illegal entry by ships from
countries including Korea, Italy, Spain and Thailand.
-- Hundreds of illegal fishing boats were in Somali
waters at any one time engaged in a $90 million
a year business, mainly in tuna, the Kenya-based
Seafarers Assistance Programme (SAP), reported
in 2006. Toxic and industrial waste was also being
dumped there, while there was a roaring trade
in illegal charcoal. -- Andrew Mwangura, then
SAP coordinator, said in 2006 that they operated
in two main groups calling themselves the "Somali
Coastguards" and the "National Volunteer
Coastguards". But then, they began to demand
bigger ransoms to release ships and cargos. *
WHERE ARE THE PIRATES BASED: -- The lawless former
fishing outpost of Eyl in the semi-autonomous
province of Puntland is one of the main bases
for the pirates who have been attacking ships
in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean. -- Other
groups are based off south Somalia. Sources: Reuters/International
Maritime Bureau/BBC/Seafarers Assistance Programme
Somali pirates hijack giant oil tanker
The Somali pirates have hit
again and this time they struck pay dirt. Today
they seized the Saudi Arabian Sirius Star, a
319,430 ton supertanker the size of an aircraft
carrier. The ship has a crew of 25 and, according
to shipping sources, can carry up to 2 million
barrels of oil. That would make the Sirius Star
the most valuable catch so far for the Somalis.
This is just another of a sad series of seizures
made off of East Africa, with the lawless land
of Somalia acting as a base for various crews
of pirates who have been getting bolder and
bolder each month. A multinational force of
naval ships started patrolling the area recently
to rein the pirates in, but they quickly changed
their strategy and started moving their operations
into other areas. The Sirius Star, for example,
was captured off the coast of Kenya.
So far, 33 vessels of different types have been
taken this year, with only 16 being released
after the payment of large ransoms (most of
them in excess of one million dollars). A guarded
corridor was set up through the area on August
22nd and ninety percent of the vessels sailing
through the region have used it without incident.
Again, this successful attack shows how the
pirates can successfully adapt to changed circumstances,
almost with impunity.
How are the pirates able to do this in the face
of modern warships? Sadly, the answer is: easily.
Each pirate team operates from a mothership,
which detects suitable targets and sends out
boarding parties in fast small boats armed with
GPSs, RPGs and submachine guns. They avoid the
patrolling warships and are taking advantage
of the lack of coordination between their various
nationalities.
What can be done to curtail this new scourge?
If the world is serious about stopping these
parasites, then the international community
is going to have to grow some balls and get
aggressive; extremely aggressive. These guys
aren't going to stop unless they stopped, in
the permanent sense. Personally, I think special
forces units should be used to retake the over
dozen ships that are still currently being held;
pirates caught in the act of attacking ships
should be sunk without mercy, even if they are
retreating; and operations should be run by
combined sea and special forces units to identify
pirate camps along the Somali coast and proactively
destroy them.
I know I am advocating an extremely violent
response but that region is an extremely violent
place full of extremely violent gangs committing
extremely violent acts. Only extreme violence
will stop them. There are those who would rather
negotiate with these scumbags but these pirates,
like their brethren from previous ages, only
respect pay offs and death.
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PIRACY PRONE REGIONS
Mariners are warned to be
extra cautious and to take necessary precautionary
measures when transiting the following areas:
S E Asia and the Indian Sub Continent
Bangladesh : Sixty two incidents
have been reported since January 2006. Pirates
are targeting ships preparing to anchor. Most
attacks reported at Chittagong anchorages and
approaches. Although the number of attacks has
fallen recently, the area is still listed as very
high risk.
Indonesia : Balongan, Balikpapan,
Belawan. Generally be vigilant in other areas.
Many attacks may have gone unreported.
Malacca straits : Although the number of attacks
has dropped due to the increase and constant patrols
by the littoral states relevant Authorities since
July 2005, ships are advised to continue maintaining
a strict anti piracy watch when transiting the
straits.
Philippines : Manila - Pirates
target ships at anchor.
Singapore Straits : Pirates seen attacking ships
while at anchor but in the past several ships
were attacked while underway.
Africa and Red Sea
Lagos (Nigeria) : Pirates are
violent and have attacked and robbed vessels/kidnapped
crews along the coast and river, at anchorages
and ports. A total of 42 incidents have been reported
in Nigeria since 08.01.2007. Twenty five attacks
alone for Lagos and seven for Bonny River. Generally
be vigilant in other areas in Nigeria.
Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) : Twenty
incidents have been reported since 05.06.2006.
Pirates are targeting ships in port and anchorages.
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Mombasa
(Kenya):
Gulf of Aden / Red Sea : Numerous
pirate attacks have been reported by ships and
yachts in the Gulf of Aden/Red sea. In the past,
some of the vessels were fired upon.
Somalian waters
: The IMB Piracy Reporting Centre
has received 31 actual and attempted attacks in
2007. Many more attacks may have gone unreported.
Some pirates are dangerous and would fire their
automatic weapons at ships to stop them. Occasionally,
they would use their RPG (Rocket Propelled Grenade)
launchers at ships. Pirates are believed to be
using “mother vessels” to launch attacks at very
far distance from coast. These “mother vessel”
is able to proceed to very far out to sea to launch
smaller boats to attack and hijack passing ships.
Eastern and Northeastern coasts are high risk
areas for attacks and hijackings. Vessels not
making scheduled calls to ports in Somalia should
keep as far away as possible from the Somali coast,
ideally more than 200 nautical miles. Mariners
are also advised to report any suspicious boats
to the Centre.
South and Central America and the Caribbean
waters
Brazil : Though the number of
attacks has dropped in Santos, ships are advised
to continue to be vigilant.
Peru : Callao
Rest of the World
Arabian Sea : Sightings and calls
from suspicious small boats. In some cases, boats
pursued the ships with unknown intent.
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