Thanks to a Special Freeper for pointing to the article below:
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ICC-CCS.ORG: THE WEEKLY PIRACY REPORT
http://www.icc-ccs.org/prc/piracyreport.php
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http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_1700925,00.html
"Pirates hit Malacca Strait, again"
06/05/2005 12:35 - (SA)
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ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Kuala Lumur - Pirates are again attacking ships in the busy Malacca Strait after a brief lull following the deadly tsunami which devastated Indonesia's Aceh province on Sumatra island last December, an international watchdog said on Friday.
Three vessels were attacked in the key sea lane in a two-week period, with pirates opening fire with automatic weapons to force the vessels to stop and allow them to board, the Piracy Reporting Centre of the London-based International Maritime Bureau said.
"The attacks, all thought to be made by the same gang, resulted in the kidnap of two or more seafarers from each vessel and were followed by a demand for ransom a few days later.
"The subsequent release of the hostages suggests that ransoms were paid," the report said."
U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT - CONSULAR INFORMATION SHEET - BURMA
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1077.html
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1398652/posts
"Deadly explosions rock Burma"
Australian Broadcasting ^ | 2005-05-08 | AFP
Posted on 05/07/2005 12:25:40 PM PDT by Lessismore
ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Four huge bomb explosions have rocked the Burmese capital Rangoon, killing dozens of people and leaving over 200 injured.
The near-simultaneous mid-afternoon blasts targeted two packed upscale shopping centres, the Dagon and Junction Eight, and the downtown Rangoon Trade Centre which is hosting a Thai trade fair.
A witness at the downtown Dagon centre, where two bombs exploded, counted at least 20 bodies, while a witness at Junction Eight - some 13 kilometres north of the city centre - counted over 40.
A Burmese national at the Rangoon Trade Centre says he also saw scores of bodies there.
A stall holder at the centre says there "many casualties" because the bomb hit a fashion show being held on the third floor.
An official from Burma's military government has confirmed four bombs were detonated, but has given no casualty count.
Hospitals in Yangon have been unable to give a death toll, but say over 200 people are wounded.
"I saw these people in a pool of blood. Some of them had their legs and arms blown off," a man outside the Rangoon Trade Centre said.
A survivor of the Dagon blast recalls panicked efforts to escape.
"There was an explosion in the Dagon centre, and we were so frightened we ran downstairs to get out," a young woman said.
A witness at Junction Eight said she counted "at least 40 bodies being brought out of the building".
Military-ruled Burma has been at various stages of civil war for decades, with government troops battling several ethnic guerrilla armies, but the capital has not seen an attack on this scale in living memory.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks."