A post by Pat
Somali pirates hijacked a U.S.-flagged cargo ship with 20 American crew members onboard. The 17,000-ton Maersk Alabama was carrying emergency relief to Mombasa, Kenya, when it was hijacked.
The U.S. and the navies of other countries are patrolling the Gulf of Aden. The pirates adapted by moving to less protected waters. In a February ABC News article, Capt. Mark Genung, the commanding officer of the USS Vella Gulf, the flagship of the Navy’s Combined Task Force 151, spoke about a “Pirate Code”. According to the Pirate Code it is in the pirates’ best interest not to harm hostages as it would hurt business. The U.K. Telegraph calls the seizure an embarrassment to the U.S. and a challenge to President Obama.
Somali Pirates Seize U.S. Cargo Ship with 20 Americans Onboard
The brazen attack took place despite the presence of a multi-national naval task force patrolling the waters off Somalia to deter pirates.
The incident is likely to be hugely embarrassing for the United States, which has warships involved in the patrols, and may spur the piracy problem to a whole new level of confrontation.
“A US-flagged and Danish owned container vessel reported that it had been boarded by pirates at 730am local time today,” said Lt Stephanie Murdock, spokesman for the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, based in Bahrain.
“The closest US Navy vessel which could have assisted was more than 300 nautical miles away. I cannot yet confirm the nationalities of the crew.”
Leslie Edwards, a British-based security specialist who has advised on a number Indian Ocean ship hijacks, said: “As far as we know, this is the first time that US citizens have been taken in this fashion, and certainly in anything like these numbers.
“It may dramatically change the dynamic of the whole piracy problem and how to deal with it. The big question is whether the US will stand by and allow a crew of US citizens to be held for two or three months in the full glare of the world media. That would be a difficult test for President Barack Obama.â€
Andrew Mwangura of the Seafarers’ Assistance Programme in the Kenyan port city of Mombasa said, “We have been told the crew are Americans and that they are safe”.
The raid was the sixth successful hijacking in four days by pirates operating in the lawless waters off Somalia.
Somali Piracy and the International Response
As the hijackings have increased in number they have also become more sophisticated, enabling the pirates to seize larger targets. [...]
The Gulf of Aden is currently being patrolled by one of the largest anti-piracy flotillas in modern history. Organized as the Combined Maritime Forces, the United States-led coalition features warships from at least 20 different navies. Due to differing rules of engagement and the various legal complexities related to capturing, holding, and prosecuting pirates, the multilateral contingent has attempted to combat pirate attacks mainly through the sheer strength of its presence in the area. As one would expect, pirates tend to shy away from commercial vessels backed by a military escort, preferring instead to go after unprotected and thus more vulnerable targets. Despite the robust size of the international community’s anti-piracy fleet, however, the Somali pirates have grown increasingly brazen in recent months.
U.S. Navy Hunt for Somali Pirates: Behind the Pirate Code
“Whether it’s a code, a set of ethics, a good set of rules, they do have an understanding of how they want to do business, and they hold to that,” Genung told ABC News.
“They called it the pirate code. What is clear is that there’s a group of elders within the pirate hierarchy who’ve all decided it’s in the pirates’ best interest not to harm the hostages,” he said. The use of force, said Genung, would push nations to intervene, thwarting the pirates’ goal of a cash ransom.
The Telegraph has it right. This is a test for the U.S. and for Pres Obama. Obama also likes to sail in his own waters and practice a code of conduct that suits his best interests. Unlike the Pirate Code, his ingratiating posturing can cause great harm to U.S. citizens held hostage to his reckless modus operandi.
Within a few days, the N. Korean nutcase and now pirates(terrorists) have felt a little more secure about testing us. I wonder if this latest test would have taken place at all if we had responded to N. Korea’s rocket launch with a bang.
This is also the result of Odumbf(rea)k (I’ve upgraded his name) arrogantly prancing around the globe apologizing for us, denigrating this nation, ignoring the fact that war was declared on us and that Islamofascists are always at war with Christians, Jews, Muslims who do not condone or want to participate in terror, and anyone who stands in their way simply because they want to dominate the world.
Thanks to Obama’s incompetence, arrogance, self-indulgence, greed and his parading the message of weakness, not only is America rapidly becoming insignificant, but we are all vulnerable – every single person in this country and everyone in the western world. It’s quite sobering when you think about U.K. papers being more honest and objective in their coverage of Odumbf(rea)k than most of what is written in American publications. And yes, the U.K. Telegraph indeed has it right. This is an embarrassment to our nation and a challenge to Odumbf(rea)k – a challenge he is incapable of meeting because we have a guy in office who has NO EXPERIENCE AT ALL in handling personal or professional challenges. He just talks. And talks. And talks. And talks…
May God be with our captured crew and bring them home to safety. This is surely a situation in which Divine Intervention is needed.
On that note: God help us all!
Baraq will probably file a protest to the Longshoreman Union in Biloxi. On the other hand, as I recall, there was an incident in Somalia some time ago, when “Jubilation T. Cornpone” Clinton just pulled out our forces.
Of course, Baraq will give a speech after an investigation as to what course the ships were on; were they speeding, making left or right turns across the paths of of oncoming speedboats..?
But rely on one thing: He’ll make a speech.
Totally agree with you ARTGAL and yep, SHAWMUT, the speech is coming. That’s all B. Hussein can do – I hope his neck hurts after the upcoming “tennis match”. It will take some time for the speech to be written in “American” versus “Austrian”. :-)