Source: Pirates repel sailors attempting to reach captain

CNN ^ | 4/11/09 | Staff

[BarnacleCenturion]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Pirates off the eastern coast of Africa fired on U.S. sailors Saturday as they tried to reach the lifeboat where an American captain is being held, a U.S. official familiar with the situation told CNN.

The gunfire forced the sailors, who did not return fire, to turn back, the official said.

The incident took place some 12 hours ago as the guided missile destroyer USS Bainbridge sent a small team toward the lifeboat, said the official.

[wxgesr]

I understand the pirates have satellite phones. That is the standard operating procedure, they are never out of range, except for the poles. But, they run on batteries and will eventually stop working if not charged. There are ways to reduce battery life or deny them communications if we wanted to.

[stevie_d_64]

Yep, make the Navy look bad and inept...

I hope the crew did this under protest...

Way to go Obama...What an asshat...

[stevie_d_64]

This is a watch I would not enjoy standing...

[stevie_d_64]

Imagine yourself on a ship...Pick any ship...

Then you are asked to hit a target, in a smaller (covered)life raft at say...hmmmmmm...300 yards...Thats about as close (if that), they (pirates) would remotely let any ship get close enough to them to do...

Personally, I (if I was a pirate) wouldn’t let any ship unknown to me get within visual range, unless I knew who it was...

The seas are not glass smooth...

[Crawdad]

The bigger audience the four terrorists get, the weaker the Obama response. There will be thousands of people onshore as shields. The word “cluster” will have a new definition tomorrow.

[stevie_d_64]

“I’m going to sip this here Prune Juice, and have some quality time in the head down the hallway...”

“Call me when all this s4!t is over!”

[Girlene]

Better hurry up because the whole mess is just about to float onshore. They were 20 miles offshore three hours ago.

This is really curious. Not sure how they would have managed that. Here's a bit of reporting from CTV, U.S. ships, helicopters watch pirates, captain

"U.S. ships and helicopters continued to watch a lifeboat carrying four Somali pirates and an American sea captain on Sunday as a tense standoff on the high seas entered its fifth day.

The exact location of the lifeboat, which is out of fuel and drifting in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Somalia, was not clear on Sunday.

Ahmed Mohamed Nur, a pirate himself who said he is in contact with the pirates on the lifeboat, told The Associated Press that "we do not know exactly where the boat is." "..............

..............."Nur indicated that "helicopters continue to fly over their heads in the daylight and in the night they are under the focus of a spotlight from a warship.""...........

.............." Abdi Sheikh Muse, a fisherman in the port town of Harardhere, told the Associated Press that helicopters were flying overhead on Sunday and that a warship could be seen on the horizon.

Muse said this could mean the lifeboat is quite close to shore. ".................

[libscum]

Barry- Barry where are you——??? Though shall not raise up against a fellow Muslim and black brother. BArry is better suited for dictator of Somalia rather then the US. How is Michelle the racist garden doing while the captain from VT and others suffer in captivity. These people the Marxists need to go away, this is far more serious then Hillary threats to capitalism.

[laxcoach]

This is cold, and maybe naive.

I believe our policy should be as follow: Any vessel overtaken by pirates will be promptly sunk by the US Navy regardless of the flag of the vessel or hostages.

The impact is twofold. 1) Pirates know they need to get in and out. They can’t stay on ship. 2) The vessel owners and operators would have a vested interest in defending their vessels.

Again it is cold. But I would rather men who knew the dangers of sailing in those seas take responsibility for those dangers than pay ransom for ships and lives to scumbags who will be emboldened to perform more acts of piracy.

[bergmeid]

Actually, we need to quit calling them “pirates”. These are Al Qaeda related JIHADIS.

[BagCamAddict]

“The USS Bainbridge was joined on Friday by the USS Halyburton, which has helicopters, and the USS Boxer was expected soon after. The Boxer, the flagship of a multination anti-piracy task force, resembles a small aircraft carrier. It has a crew of more than 1,000, a mobile hospital, missile launchers and about two dozen helicopters and attack planes.”

Also, I’m on a blackberry so I can’t search very well or post a new article, but Twitter breaking news is reporting helicopters flying over pirate lair on shore, residents in panic fearing air strike, etc. Maybe someone can find and post a link.

I can’t find a current pirate thread... Maybe someone can post a LIVE pirate thread so we can post all latest developments in one place. Where is the most-current, most-live thread? Anyone?

[Shellback Chuck]

Horatio Nelson was taken out by a French sniper.

[Girlene]

I posted a link in post 228 regarding the helicopters flying overhead. I assume the “live” thread is whatever is foremost in the breaking news sidebar.

[Girlene]

A bit of the story on board the Maersk Alabama from CSM, New bid to free captain of pirated US ship

..................."On Wednesday, the Somali raiders came at the ship from the stern, reports the Times of London, firing shots into the air, and boarding with hooks. The ship's captain, Richard Phillips, surrendered himself to the pirates in an attempt to save his crew.

[Crew member ATM] Reza, a father of one[,] told how he led one of the pirates to the engine room, where he stabbed him in the hand with an ice pick and tied him up.

The rest of the crew did not give more details, but have told family members by phone that they took one pirate hostage before giving him up in the hope their captain would be released. Instead, the Somalis fled with Captain Phillips to the lifeboat. "...................

[Virginia Queen]

If the Stupid B O administration had lef the Navy alone, our sailors would have had Capt Phillips free soon after the USS BAINBRIDGE arrived on scene. They had Seals aboard. The Seals went on with the Cargo Ship. Those Seals could have easily gotten to that Dingy, pushed it to the ship, done some plastic surgery on those pirates (a new smile) and it would have been over. But the A H in the White House JUST HAD to get the State Dept and FBI involved - and let’s not forget calling on the rest of the world for help. If this is an example of how B O is going to protect us all from harm and our enemies, we might as well start digging our own graves because it is clear that he is impotent. If he can’t use a telepromptet to help him, he can’t perform.
Our sailors could have taken care of this, but AGAIN we don’t let them do what they are trained to do.
Pray for our country and for each and every one of us. We really need it.

[dusttoyou]

Admiral Nelson just to mention one sniped from a ship and a ship A GREAT DEAL SMALLER AND LESS STABLE THAT A DESTROYER!

My Grand Dad had a saying, “ Can’t never could do anyting”. There are a number of “Can’t do’s” here on FR from time to time.

[dusttoyou]

Admiral Nelson just to mention one sniped from a ship and a ship A GREAT DEAL SMALLER AND LESS STABLE THAT A DESTROYER!

My Grand Dad had a saying, “ Can’t never could do anyting”. There are a number of “Can’t do’s” here on FR from time to time.

[Munz]

>>Send the seals in, blow the bottom of the life boat out and pick up the captn.
Let the sharks have the scum remaining.<<

They won’t allow that unless the SEAL’s are handcuffed, hogtied and weaponless. Then and only then will Obama sanction it.

[PISANO]

The DEPT of JUSTICE is "IN CHARGE" of this hostage situation. That is why the FBI is on scene. There is NOTHING the US NAVY can do without permission of the DOJ.

This is the idiotic situation the BHO administration has put itself in when treating an act of war as nothing more than a CRIMINAL matter!!