Posted on 02/22/2011 7:33:13 AM PST by Allthegoodusernamesaregone
WASHINGTON, Feb. 22, 2011 – Somali pirates killed all four Americans they had held hostage aboard a sailing vessel in the Indian Ocean this morning, U.S. Central Command officials announced.
U.S. officials were negotiating with the pirates for the safe return of the captured Americans when the murders took place, officials said.
Centcom officials said that in the midst of negotiations, U.S. forces responded to gunfire aboard the S/V Quest. When the forces reached the boat, officials said, they discovered all four hostages had been shot by their captors. Despite immediate steps to provide life-saving care, all four hostages ultimately died of their wounds.
During the boarding, the Somali pirates fired on the U.S. forces, who killed two pirates and captured 13 others. U.S. forces already had captured two other pirates, and the servicemembers boarding the Quest found the remains of two other pirates.
“In total, it is believed 19 pirates were involved in the hijacking of the S/V Quest,” Centcom officials said.
“We express our deepest condolences for the innocent lives callously lost aboard the Quest,” said Marine Corps Gen. James N. Mattis, Centcom’s commander.
The pirates seized the boat Feb. 18 off the coast of Oman. Somali pirates -– often operating from mother ships far out to sea -- have captured scores of ships and generally have held the ships and crews for ransom. News reports indicate Somali pirates currently hold 29 ships with more than 660 hostages.
Piracy in the region occurred originally off of Somalia’s east coast for several years. In August 2009, the pirates extended their attacks to the Gulf of Aden, between Yemen and Somalia’s north coast. The pirates since have ranged farther out to sea -– up to 600 miles –- and now affect more than a million square miles in the Gulf of Aden, the west Indian Ocean and the Red Sea.
The United States has worked closely with regional and international partners to attack the problem. In this case, American forces closely monitored and tailed the Quest. Four U.S. Navy warships made up a response force dedicated to recovering the S/V Quest: the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, the guided-missile cruiser USS Leyte Gulf, the guided-missile destroyers USS Sterett and USS Bulkeley.
I think you misspelled the last three letters in your name, Chickensoup.
I mean, you are basically advocating a strategy of cut’n’run, you know.
Two of the Americans killed were Christian missionaries. I doubt very seriously they’d hose the pirates with an AK-47.
And here we have what could easily be construed as an act of war against the US and we are simply rolling over and snoring.. thanks to the present administration!
With that Naval frigate nearby, we must be sure those Pirate cowards are shark’s lunches before they get to their virgins....
Two of the Americans killed were Christian missionaries. I doubt very seriously they’d hose the pirates with an AK-47.If everyone else were packing AK-47s, or ship-to-ship missles, or whatever they deemed appropriate (I think a 50 cal machine gun would do just fine), then there would be very few pirates and the missionaries would never have been approached.
Do you have a reference for that Federal law ? US Gun control on international waters is beyond the pale, sounds crazy. Is it really a US law?
What is interesting is when the PRChinese get captured or killed.
You would think this would be cut and dried. But every forum has its contrarians, I guess.
What is that great body of peace loving problem solvers known as the U.N. doing about this? How they can continue to occupy prime space in America is beyond me.
Exactly. What the heck would they bother caturing 13 animals for? To spend millions on and get all kinds of grief from the left? Hoping to end up with the death sentence? Just speed up the justice process and kill them on site.
Isn’t it maritime law to just hang pirates where ever they are found?
Is there anyway we could donate a couple million to Blackwater and have them kill these cowards off?
I think you misspelled the last three letters in your name, Chickensoup.
I mean, you are basically advocating a strategy of cut’n’run, you know.
______________________________________
No I am not cutting and running, I am done.
I am done with taking care of multinationals that have gutted this country and still want US protection. You want our protection, get your production back into our country.
I am done with playing cop. If that mess called Europe, the middle east and Asia can’t take care of themselves, tough.
I want to focus on the US. I want to focus on extending our water boundaries, and making our country safer and freer. IF you have read a little of what I have been writing for the past few days you will know that it isnt about fear, it is about freedom for our citizens.
RE Hoagy62: “...Two of the Americans killed were Christian missionaries...”
Just because you’re a “Christian Missionary” doesn’t mean you have to be stupid and let yourself or others be murdered in your presence if you can prevent it.
And what does it say about anyone who would let others be murdered without lifting a finger to even TRY to stop it from happening? Life is a gift from God - murder is a sin. Suicide is a sin. NOT preventing yourself from being murdered, if you can possibly do so, is suicide. Killing the would-be killer is NOT murder - it is justifiable self-defense.
And even if it THEY weren’t armed, the Crew should have been, regardless of whatever stupid international law there is.
No law in the world supercedes your RIGHT to not be murdered without putting up one hell of a vulgar brawl.
RE Sickoflibs: “Do you have a reference for that Federal law ? US Gun control on international waters is beyond the pale, sounds crazy. Is it really a US law?”
I don’t have the specific reference brother, but it came up back during the Maersk Alabama (??) ship-jack last year in one of the threads. I’m sure there’s folks out here who could find it instantly, though.
Comes down to cheap protection (surplus AKs or whatever and a some basic training for the crew) versus a bunch of Dead Americans and millions of dollars of taxpayer money for US Naval Warships to intercept and engage, with the potential resulting damage to millions of dollars worth of shipping/freight/oil....etc...
Just awful. These people apparently knew about the pirates. Turned off their electronics and tried to sneak by. I am some what surprised el heffemacdaddy even sent a Navy ship to the area to try to help them. I am surprised he even let the Navy kill any of the pirates.
glad to know that the Obama admin did everything in their power to save these people. /sarcasm off
There's a section in your city known for muggings, shootings, and rape. So.....do you prudently avoid that section of town, or are you STUPID and stroll through alone on a Saturday night with $100 dollar bills hanging out of your pants?
STUPID people do that.
Now that sounds like it would be a real blast!
This Bud’s for you.
Waffle Hut, yum, bring 'em on.
You should know me by now. I heard this before on FNC :
There is some confusion on this answer, because I think people might not be getting the difference in naval terminology between GUNS and SMALL ARMS.
There are laws regarding placing guns on a merchant ship, which can effectively make said ship a legal target in military operations. Essentially, a GUN is one of the deck mounted cannons you see on destroyers, cruisers, etc. SMALL ARMS, however, are a different category... and crews COULD legally be armed as such. Here's some reasons why a lot of crews AREN'T armed, however:
1) The pirates have grenade and small rocket launchers. They could potentially do a lot more damage against a crew armed with small arms
2) Merchant crews aren't generally trained in small arms combat
3) Pirates have yet to kill a single hostage, so most nations consider ransoming to be a valid alternative to a potentially lethal fight (that also makes the kill score 5:0 in our favor)
4) a significant number of freighters attacked by pirates are chemical haulers or oil tankers. If hit by an RPG or Rocket, or even by a stray bullet, those chemical or oil tanks could explode and kill the crew while causing environmental catastrophe
5) cost of comparable arms... while AK-47s are cheap, rocket launchers aren't. Not smart to bring a toothpick to a sword fight
6) Fishing trawlers are about 20 times more common than pirates in the area. Shooting up a fishing family would be VERY bad press.
7) pirates use surprise attacks with speed boats. Often the small crews of freightors don't even know the pirates are attacking until they're already climbing on board, even before that the boats can go 35 mph, which actually makes a fairly hard target to hit.
Answer : Why can't merchant ships carry weapons to defend themselves?
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