Posted on 12/16/2008 3:21:25 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
On the same day Somali gunmen seized two more ships, the U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Tuesday to authorize nations to conduct land and air attacks on pirate bases on the coast of the Horn of Africa country.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was on hand to push through the resolution, one of President George W. Bush's last major foreign policy initiatives.
Rice said the resolution will have a significant impact, especially since "pirates are adapting to the naval presence in the Gulf of Aden by traveling further" into sea lanes not guarded by warships sent by the U.S. and other countries.
The council authorized nations to use "all necessary measures that are appropriate in Somalia" to stop anyone using Somali territory to plan or carry out piracy in the nearby waters. The gulf is traversed each year by thousands of cargo ships sailing between Asia and the Suez Canal.
The resolution allows action in Somali airspace, even though the U.S. appeased Indonesia, a council member, by removing direct mention of it, U.S. officials said.
Somalia Foreign Minister Ali Ahmed Jama, whose government asked for the help, said he was "heartened" by the council action. "These acts of piracy are categorically unacceptable and should be put to an end," he said.
The resolution sets up the possibility of increased American military action in Somalia, a chaotic country where a U.S. peacekeeping mission in 1992-93 ended with a humiliating withdrawal of troops after a deadly clash in Mogadishu, as portrayed in the movie "Black Hawk Down."
The commander of the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet expressed doubt last week about the wisdom of staging ground attacks on Somali pirates. Vice Adm. Bill Gortney told reporters it is difficult to identify pirates and said the potential for killing innocent civilians "cannot be overestimated."
(Excerpt) Read more at iht.com ...
Uh, what about at sea?
Note: Explore this site for piracy alerts, live map, and other valuable information.
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Note: The following text is a quote:
Weekly Piracy Report
9 December - 15 December 2008
Suspicious crafts
None reported
Recently reported incidents
13.12.2008:1145 UTC: Posn: 13:43N – 048:17E: Gulf of Aden.
One wooden speed boat with 5 - 6 persons armed with automatic weapons and RPG chased and opened fire on a container ship underway. Pirates attempted to board with a ladder. Master took evasive manoeuvres and contacted coalition warships for assistance. A naval helicopter arrived at location. One seeing the helicopter the skiff aborted the attack.
12.12.2008: 1125 LT: Posn: 13:31N – 048:39E: Gulf of Aden.
One pirate boat with seven armed men chased a tanker underway. Pirates were seen carrying automatic weapons, RPG and a wooden ladder for boarding. Later, the boat aborted the chase and headed towards another vessel nearby. A navy helicopter arrived at location.
Description of the speed boat : Wooden construction, 8 – 10 meters in length, blue coloured hull, raised bow, speed about 17 knots.
12.12.2008: 1212 LT: Posn: 13:32.7N – 048:37.5E, Gulf of Aden.
Eight pirates armed with machine guns and RPG in a blue coloured speed boat doing 17 knots attacked a general cargo ship underway. They fired upon the ship with machine guns and attempted to board the ship, twice, using a ladder. Crew managed to detach the ladder even though the pirates were firing at the ship. Pirates aborted the attempted attack and tried to attack other vessels in the vicinity. Coalition forces were informed.
11.12.2008: 0142 LT: Posn: 22:15N - 091:44E: Chittagong ‘A’ anchorage, Bangladesh.
Six robbers armed with knives boarded a tanker at anchor. Alarm raised and crew mustered. Coast guard boarded for investigation. Ship’s stores stolen from bosun store.
Anyone know if the pirates have recognizable “bases” and clear aerial targets? It should not be difficult for us to obliterate distinct targets if there are docking areas known to be controlled by pirate groups etc..... the tough part will be if they simply fade into the population and ordinary facilities, as so many terrorists love to do.
Excuse me, but haven’t nations alway possessed that right?
Simple, put a carrier in the area, even a marine carrier. Fly a regular rotation of UAV’s with hellfire missiles up and down the coast, if you see anything that floats you blast it.
They do. There are a few villages along the Somali coast that have served as bases. One of them was attacked by the USN within the last couple of years.
Bump
I hope we don’t face a real crisis like a 9-11 sized attack on the US and have to wait around for the UN to approve defending ourselves. Those pirates could have been blasted under the common laws of the sea and only India had the moxie to fight them.
Two out of three ain't bad. :<(
Thank you Jet Jaguar.
/
the tough part will be if they simply fade into the population and ordinary facilities, as so many terrorists love to do.
I suspect that is the case. The pirates I was familiar with in SE Asia were merely fishermen taking advantage of targets of opportunity to rob, rape and murder. They would return to their fishing villages with their booty after committing their piracy. I suppose today they are back to working as fishermen.
The U.N. once again trying to usurp authority by default.
My thought exactly. The UN is giving nations the right of self defense now? Sounds like they may be just a little full of themselves.
“From the Halls of Montezuma
To the floor of the U.N.
We will fight our country’s battles
When the socialists say we can...”
Seriously, Jefferson is rolling in his grave. We didn’t need no stinkin’ UN resolution to beat the Dey of Algiers like a rug when he earnestly deserved it. Quite the contrary: Jefferson went it alone precisely because the timid hankie-flutterers of Europe would not fight back against the Barbaries.
We should reactivate some Iowa class battleships and park them off the coast of Somalia. We have lots of ammunition that's already paid for.
One more thing. I blame George H.W. Bush for setting the precedent in Gulf War I that leads people to believe today that we can only stand up for ourselves when given a permission slip by the whimpering, simpering toadies of Turtle Bay.
Ping.
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