Posted on 11/30/2009 10:23:51 AM PST by Steelfish
Somali Pirates Seize U.S.-Bound Tanker
JEFFREY GETTLEMAN November 30, 2009 NAIROBI, Kenya — Somali pirates have struck again, seizing an oil tanker loaded with $20 million in crude that was headed from Saudi Arabia to the United States, naval authorities said Monday.
According to European naval reports, nine pirates hijacked the tanker and its crew of about 30 about 800 miles offshore and headed back toward pirate havens along the coast of central Somalia. The Somali pirate business appears to be back in full swing after a brief lull this summer that some attributed to increased naval patrols but which may have had more to do with the monsoon season. Now that the seas are calm, the pirates have resumed operations, acting with even greater sophistication.
“They have definitely increased their capacity and their ability to stay out at sea for longer,” said Cyrus Mody, manager of the International Maritime Bureau in London.
The pirates — many of them penniless former fishermen from Somalia’s war zones — appear to be positioning themselves in the middle of the ocean on mother ships and then, for attacks, deploying on motorized dinghies, mere ants compared to the mammoth ships they capture.
The pirates seem to have shifted from the Gulf of Aden, where dozens of ships were attacked in 2008 but which is now heavily patrolled, to the vast stretch of ocean between the African mainland and picturesque Seychelles islands.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Why why why aren’t we blowing up these motherships? Sorry for the hostages on board but this is war not law.
I’m not getting this at all. A couple of well placed snipers with 50 caliber sniper rifles and they could take down these guys before they could board the ship. What’s going on here anyway?
Who’s flag is she under?
The ex-Commander of the USS Cole says the Somali pirates “have a good business model”.
When military commanders start talking in this cowardly, non-judgmental manner, we are in deep trouble, folks.
Problem solved. C'on, it wouldn't be hard for a Sub or Ship or maybe an AWACS to identify the mother ships... after that: target practice.
The pirates know that “their man” in the Oval Office will see to it that any U.S. military personnel that so much as even gives em a fat lip will be court-marshalled.
“I’m not getting this at all. A couple of well placed snipers with 50 caliber sniper rifles and they could take down these guys before they could board the ship. What’s going on here anyway?”
PC cowardice beyond human understanding.
Until they start shooting these gangsters on their approach, I hope the pirates clean their clocks.
Yep ... we have submarines, surface combatants, Aircraft carriers, AWACS, Hawkeyes, Global Hawk, Air Combat Command ... and a whinging pansy in the White House.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.