Posted on 04/12/2009 7:06:16 AM PDT by BarnacleCenturion
With a hijacked yacht drifting closer to the Somali shore and all ransom offers rejected, French naval officers relayed a last-minute offer to the pirates -- trade our lives for those of a mother and her 3-year-old child being held on board the vessel.
The pirates answer: Come near us and we'll blow up the boat.
With that, French President Nicolas Sarkozy ordered a daring raid to recapture the yacht of Chloe Lemacon, her son, Colin, and her husband, Florent, a 28-year-old computer programmer who had taken them and two friends on an ill-fated journey through pirate-infested waters because he "wanted to get away from it all."
A squad of 70 French commandos had parachuted into the area after the Lemacons were seized eight days ago. They had shot out the yacht's sails to immobilize it, but still the boat drifted toward shore.
As soon as Sarkozy's order came down, snipers took out two pirates on deck, while a third dived into the ocean to escape.
Within 30 seconds, 20 commandos in high-speed watercraft raced from the naval ships toward the sailboat, called the Tanit. Eight of them boarded the 42-foot vessel, where two pirates, who were holding the hostages below deck, immediately opened fire with AK-47 rifles.
That's when the plan went awry. The French forces shot back, and at some point during the gun battle a round killed Florent.
After three harrowing minutes, the raid was over. The three surviving pirates surrendered and were arrested. No one else was seriously hurt.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
The three surviving pirates surrendered and were arrested.
No. They have gangplanks for justice out on the seas. Use them.
The French have acted against the pirates. America’s President, the “Mulatto Malefactor” has not. I have never been LESS PROUD of my country.
A 28 year old computer programmer has a yacht?
Rescued French yacht captain Florent Lemacon may have died in friendly fire PIRACY UPDATE
Uh, yes, it’s a paid profession. Why do you sound surprised?
I will always have great pride in my country, though I do have utter contempt for those who put Hussein in the White House. A traitor to this nation and the American people has assumed the role of “acting president.” The question for actual Americans is how long we will permit this very dangerous situation to continue.
not enough to buy a yacht
meanwhile: zero is participating in an easter egg hunt.
remember the countdown of the hostage situation during the carter 4 years?
when reagan took office, they hostages were IMMEDIATLEY released.
Not true (speaking from experience).
This is just one of many indicators that suggest that Sarkozy has stepped up to the plate as leader of the free world, in the face of the power vacuum left by the foolish and incompetent Obama’s lack of leadership and disdain for America’s traditional post-WWII role in the world...
Vive La France!
(My how things have changed)
?Uh, yes, it’s a paid profession. Why do you sound surprised?”
1. There are LOTS of paid professions, relatively few yacht owners.
2. Relatively few yacht owners are 28 yo.
3. Computer programming is not considered an especially high paying profession and much of it is now outsourced to India.
4. The link shows that programmers with 20 years of experience make < 80K a year. Hardly yacht money.
Leave it to Obama to make the French look like men of action.
Here is the link I was referring to in my last post.
http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Computer_Programmer/Salary
The plan didn't go awry. These journalist are so stupid it is unbelievable. No one knows whose bullet killed the man. You must take a chance that you can save all the hostages but be prepared to lose some, otherwise the Pirates go free and threaten the lives of other innocents on another day. This crap will stop when enough countries mount anti-pirate operations and kill all the pirates(to he** with arresting them)on board the ship.
“”French Defense Minister Herve Morin — who earlier acknowledged that a “zero risk” operation was not possible — said he had no regrets, and stood by France’s bold policy of taking the fight to the pirates.””
You know, sometimes that’s just the way the hand is dealt. A zero risk option is simply not on the table. Glad to hear someone, somewhere finally just say it.
So in their estimation the plan went awry when the good guys fired back at the terrorists.
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