Piracy off the coast of Somalia

Ships assigned to Combined Task Force 150

Piracy off the Somali coast has been a threat to international shipping since the beginning of Somalia's civil war in the early 1990s. Since 2005, many international organizations, including the International Maritime Organization and the World Food Programme, have expressed concern over the rise in acts of piracy. Combined Task Force 150, a multinational coalition task force, has taken on the role of fighting Somali piracy. In May 2008, Islamist fighters, who are opposed to the Transitional Federal Government, also attacked pirates. In September 2008, Russia announced that it will soon join the international efforts to combat piracy. However, the Russian Navy's warships will conduct operations independently.

On 7 October 2008, because of the rise in hijacks the United Nations Security Council adopted resolution 1838, which "calls upon all states interested in the security of maritime activities to take part actively in the fight against piracy on the high seas off the coast of Somalia, in particular by deploying naval vessels and military aircraft."

History

Armed suspected pirates in the Indian Ocean near Somalia. After the picture was taken, the vessel’s crew members opened fire on the U.S. Navy ships and the ship's crew members returned fire. One suspected pirate was killed and 12 were taken into custody.

See also: Somali Civil War

With the chaotic state of Somalia and the lack of a central government, combined with Somalia's location at the Horn of Africa, conditions were ripe for the growth of piracy in the early 1990s. Since the collapse of the state, boats illegally fishing in Somali waters were a common sight. Pirates at first were interested in securing the waters before businessmen and militias became involved. Acts of piracy temporarily subsided following the rise of the Islamic Courts Union in 2006. However, pirate activity began to increase after Ethiopia invaded Somalia in December 2006.

Some pirates are former fishermen, who argue that foreign ships are threatening their livelihood by fishing in Somali waters. After seeing the profitability of piracy, since ransoms are usually paid, warlords began to facilitate pirate activities, splitting the profits with the pirates. However, in most of the hijackings, the bandits have not harmed their prisoners, hoping instead to be rewarded with ransoms.

The Transitional Federal Government has made some efforts to combat piracy, occasionally allowing foreign naval vessels into Somali territorial waters. However, more often than not, foreign naval vessels chasing pirates were forced to break off when the pirates entered Somali territorial waters. The government of Puntland has made more progress in combating piracy, evident in recent interventions.

In June 2008, following the letter of the Transitional Federal Government to the President of the Council asking for assistance from the international community in its efforts to address acts of piracy and armed robbery against ships off the coast of Somalia the United Nations Security Council unanimously passed a declaration authorizing nations that have the agreement of the Transitional Federal Government to enter Somali territorial waters to deal with pirates. The measure, which was sponsored by France, the United States and Panama, will last six months. The resolution is highly unusual in that it uses international law in a way that infringes national sovereignty. France initially wanted the resolution to include other regions with pirate problems, such as West Africa, but were opposed by China, Vietnam and Libya, who wanted the sovereignty infringement limited to Somalia.

Chronology of attacks

Remains of an RPG that struck the MV Seabourn Spirit.

A sinking pirate skiff burns after taking fire from USS Porter in October 2007

MY Le Ponant was hijacked by pirates April 4, 2008

Somali pirates in small boats along the side of MV Faina from USS Howard

Date	Incident
November 5, 2005	The MV Seabourn Spirit, a luxury cruise liner carrying 210 crew members and passengers, was attacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia. Riding in two small speedboats, the pirates fired at the ship with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, but the crew drove them off with a water hose and a long range acoustic device.
January 16, 2006	Pirates hijacked the India-registered MV Safina al-Birsarat along with its crew of 16 Indians. On January 22, the USS Winston S. Churchill, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, intercepted the vessel. After warning shots were fired, the pirates surrendered and all ten onboard were taken into custody. The ten were transported to Mombasa, Kenya where they were sentenced to seven years in prison by a court.
March 18, 2006	The USS Cape St. George, a Ticonderoga-class cruiser, and the USS Gonzalez, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, engaged pirate vessels after receiving fire from them.
June 1, 2007	The Danish-owned cargo ship the MV Danica White was hijacked and maneuvered into Somali waters. On June 3, the USS Carter Hall, a Harpers Ferry-class landing ship dock engaged the pirates, firing machine-gun bursts at the skiffs in tow behind the Danish ship, but failed to stop them. Following 83 days in captivity, the crew of five and the ship were released after the owner, H. Folmer & Co, paid a ransom of 1.5 million United States dollars.
October 28, 2007	A Japanese chemical tanker, the MV Golden Nori was hijacked off the coast of Somalia. The destroyer USS Porter, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, sank the skiffs used by the pirates, but they still controlled the tanker. US and German naval vessels shadowed the captured vessel and blockaded from entering the port of Bosaso. Eventually, after demanding a ransom, the pirates freed the ship and its crew of 21 on December 12.
October 29, 2007	Pirates attacked the North Korean cargo the MV Dai Hong Dan, and captured its bridge, while the crew managed to retain control of the steering and engineering spaces. On October 30, the crew regained control of their ship, killing one pirate and capturing six. Three sailors were injured in the fight, and received medical assistance from US Navy medics from the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, the USS James E. Williams.
February 1, 2008	Pirates captured the Danish-owned Russian tugboat the MV Svitzer Korsakov. The ship was held near the town of Eyl in Puntland, until it was released along with its crew of six, on March 18, in exchange for a ransom of 700,000 dollars.
April 4, 2008	The MY Le Ponant was seized in the Gulf of Aden. The French-owned luxury yacht had no passengers on board, but there were 30 crew members: one Cameroonian, six Filipinos, 22 French, and one Ukrainian. The FS Commandant Bouan, a French D'Estienne d'Orves-class aviso, and the HMCS Charlottetown, a Halifax-class frigate, were dispatched to the yacht. On April 12 the crew and the ship were released, apparently after the owner, CMA CGM, paid a ransom. After the crew was released, French soldiers tracked the pirates, who were then on land. According to the French military a sniper in a helicopter disabled the engine of a car transporting the pirates, while another helicopter landed and captured six pirates and recovered some ransom money. On April 13 the six appeared in a French court in Paris and were charged with, among other things, hostage-taking, hijacking, and theft.
April 20, 2008	The FV Playa de Bakio was hijacked about 217 nautical miles (250 mi; 400 km) off the Somali coast. The vessel is a Basque, Spanish-registered, tuna fishing boat. According to reports, four pirates seized the vessel and its crew of 26, made up of 13 Africans and 13 Spaniards. The boat was slightly damaged in the attack and was anchored off of southeast Puntland by the hijackers. The Spanish government dispatched the Álvaro de Bazán-class frigate the SPS Méndez Núñez to the area, and put a team of combat divers on alert, but claimed to be seeking a diplomatic solution. The vessel moved along the coast as local officials sent security forces to chase away the pirates. On April 26 the ship and its crew were freed and the SPS Méndez Núñez escorted the ship to safety. The Spaniards arrived in Spain on April 30 from the Seychelles, where the African members of the crew remained. It is alleged that a 1.2 million-United States dollar ransom was paid, which the Spanish government denies paying. It is possible that the owner of the ship paid a ransom.
April 21, 2008	The MV Al-Khaleej, a United Arab Emirates-flagged cargo ship was seized, along with its 16-member Pakistani crew, by pirates off the coast of Bosaso. The next day, Puntland security forces stormed the ship, capturing seven of the hijackers, killing one, and freeing the ship and its crew. On April 30, a Puntland court sentenced the seven, as well as four collaborators detained after the raid, to life in prison.
May 17, 2008	The MV Victoria, a Jordanian-flagged vessel owned by an Emirati company was hijacked 30 nautical miles (35 mi; 56 km) off the Somali coast. The ship was travelling to the Somali capital of Mogadishu and had a crew of 12 from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Tanzania. On May 23 the ship was released on unspecified terms and continued on its course to Mogadishu, accompanied by Somali soldiers on board. Also on the 23rd, after the release of the ship, Islamic militants attacked pirates in Hobyo, apparently in response for the hijacking. According to an Islamist leader, four pirates and two militants were killed in the attack and six pirates were captured.
May 24, 2008	The MV Amiya Scan, a Dutch vessel manned by four Russians and five Filipinos was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden. The ship flies the flag of Antigua and Barbuda and is owned by the Dutch company Reider Shipping. It left the Kenyan port of Mombasa on May 19 and was headed to the Romanian port of Constanţa. The ship was transporting a damaged oil platform. The vessel was released on June 24 and sailed out of the port of Eyl. Once far enough from the coast, the ship transmitted a mayday signal, as two crew members were ill and the ship had no supplies. The FGS Emden, a German Bremen-class frigate responded to the mayday call with medical aid and supplies. The ship was further aided by a ship that Reider Shipping had contracted to assist it.
July 20, 2008	Pirates seize the MV Stella Maris, a Japanese bulk carrier, flying the flag of Panama along with its 21 crew members. The ship was released along with its crew on September 26 after a ransom of US$2 million was paid.
August 8, 2008	The Singaporean cargo ship, the MV Gem of Kilakarai, is attacked by pirates in two vessels who fired grenades at it, but the attack was thwarted by the arrival of helicopters from the USS Peleliu.
August 12, 2008	The MV Thor Star, a Thai cargo ship with a 28-member crew is seized. The Nigerian tug boat the MT Yenegoa Ocean is also hijacked.
August 19, 2008	The MV Bunga Melati Dua, a Malaysian palm oil tanker owned by MISC Berhad, and its crew of 29 Malaysians and ten Filipinos is hijacked by pirates. One Filipino crew member is killed during the boarding.
August 21, 2008	The German-owned, Antigua and Barbuda-flagged MV BBC Trinidad is hijacked. It is released on September 11, along with its 13-person crew consisting of a Slovakian captain, ten Filipinos, and two Russians, after a ransom of US$1.1 million is paid. The MT Irene, a Japanese-owned with a crew of three Croatians and 16 Filipinos is also seized on the same day. It is released around the same time as the MV BBC Trinidad for US$1.5 million. Both were held near the town of Eyl. The MV Iran Deyanat was also hijacked and brought to Eyl on the same day. The Iranian-owned ship and its crew of 14 Iranians, three Indians, two Filipinos, and 10 Eastern Europeans, possibly Croatian, is being held for ransom. It is reported that some pirates on board have suffered health problems and that the ship could be carrying chemical munitions.
August 25, 2008	The MV Bunga Melati 5, a Malaysian tanker owned by MISC Berhad is captured. The vessel and crew of its 36 Malaysians and five Filipinos is released on September 27 after a ransom of US$2 million is paid.
September 2, 2008	The Carré d'As, a 50-foot yacht, was hijacked and its two occupants, a French couple, were taken captive. The pirates demanded a million euros in ransom, and the liberation of six Somalis captured during the Le Ponant incident. On September 16, French commando frogmen from the Commando Hubert unit, operating from the frigate Courbet, stormed the yacht as it was being taken to Eyl. The two captives were freed, while one pirate was killed and six captured.
September 25, 2008	The MV Faina, a Ukrainian-owned, Belize-flagged ship carrying 33 T-72 tanks on delivery to Kenya was seized by pirates. The captain had reported that he had been surrounded by three boats. The frigate Neustrashimy of Russia's Baltic Fleet and the USS Howard have been dispatched to Somalia's coast.

See also

• Anarchy in Somalia
• Operation Enduring Freedom - Horn of Africa

External links

• 2004 vs. 2007 global piracy summary, The Economist