What has happened in a few cases is that one or more of the ship’s personnel have managed to hold themselves up behind a locked door with access to a radio. It’s not the first time this has happened. Also, not all these pirates are sophisticated enough to recognize a radio.
Huh? What pirates would those be? Not these Somalians.
What I'm waiting for is the back story. Like what when on for 40+ days. It might have taken that long for the hijackers to get far enough away from the wheelhouse, and the captain to escape watchful eyes, enough for him to get off a message. Then again, maybe not?
Whatever the case, it sounds like the pirates were able to be captured without taking a shot. Being as they were on an Iranian fishing boat, and it was U.S. Navy that was making the contact, perhaps the Somalians thought they Navy would just convert the entire boat into splinters if they didn't surrender. That would be more likely to occur with some other navy, than the U.S. Navy, like the Russians or Chinese, if we are looking to find a lack of sophistication.
Another angle here is that the Somalis will likely claim the Iranians were fishing in Somalian waters. There is a legitimate beef of a sorts there, which the Somalians have been trying to use as cover for their own piracy.
What was an Iranian fishing boat doing there in the first place?
I'm something of an expert in regards to commercial fishing, but the photo didn't show enough detail to indicate to me what sort of fishing this vessel could be used for, other than some sort of hook-and-line method. So what kind of fishing was this boat capable of doing? What were they looking for? Tuna? Although I'm broadly experienced, I'm not expert for every fishery in the world, particularly as to time and location. I'm more of an Easter Pacific, and North Pacific kind of guy.
But it is true boats from nations all over in that area are attracted to that region off of Somalia, with one reason being the lack of working governing authority, but some other reasons could be due to water conditions (if chasing migratory tuna or other top-water species) and perhaps bottom structure conditions favorable to various species, but not hammered as much by past years of over-fishing, like many other nations.
Wait a minute...went back to the article, clicked on the photo to enlarge it, used a magnifying glass too, and see that there is a gillnet being pulled over the bow. Now why in the world pirates be having an Iranian fishing boat which they had captured, still actively fishing after 40 days or more. Obviously, most likely it is a freezer boat, since nothing much can last thirty days at sea, kept on ice once caught, other than swordfish.
“Also, not all these pirates are sophisticated enough to recognize a radio.”
I was watching some special on the Bombay(?), Indian hotel attacks where the terrorists took over several hotels.
One gal said that when they were crowded into a hotel room, several of the hostages went into the bathroom and got water out of the tap (thirsty, smoky from the fires, etc.).
She said two of the terrorists saw them and went to get some water too. Except they didn’t know how to operate the faucet and so didn’t get any water!