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A Somali man has admitted attacking a US warship in April after mistaking it for a merchant vessel. Jama Idle Ibrahim and five others chased the USS Ashland and opened fire on it before being captured, court papers said. He pleaded guilty to piracy-related charges in Norfolk, Virginia, and faces 30 years in jail. Five other Somalis also face charges over the attack. Prosecutors said it was Norfolk's first piracy-related conviction in 150 years. "Modern-day pirates must be held accountable," said Neil MacBride, prosecuting. After making a deal with the authorities, Ibrahim pleaded guilty to attacking to plunder a vessel,...

NORFOLK, Va., Aug. 27 (UPI) -- A Somali man Friday pleaded guilty in federal court in Norfolk, Va., to attacking the USS Ashland in the first successful U.S. piracy prosecution in 150 years. Jama Idle Ibrahim told the court he believed the Ashland was a merchant vessel he could hold for ransom. The ship was attacked April 10 in the Gulf of Aden. "Today marks the first conviction in Norfolk for acts of piracy in more than 150 years," U.S. Attorney Neil MacBride said. "Modern-day pirates must be held accountable and will face severe consequences." Ibrahim, also known as Jaamac...

NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- The amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) was awarded the Combat Action Ribbon in December for action while in Aquaba, Jordan, in August. The Combat Action Ribbon is awarded to a ship’s crew when the safety of the ship and crew is endangered by enemy attack - such as a ship engaged by shore fire - and the ship’s crew performance is considered satisfactory. Kearsarge’s robust force protection measures thwarted a terrorist attack while pierside in Aquaba with USS Ashland (LSD 48) Aug. 19 in support of Exercise Infinite Moonlight, a two-week training exercise between...

Jordanian authorities announced Monday that they had arrested a "prime suspect" in the rocket attack on two US warships in the Jordanian port of Aqaba, reports The New York Times. Friday's attack missed the two US vessels moored in Aqaba for training exercises, but killed one Jordanian soldier and severely wounded another. It was the most serious attempt to harm Western interests in Jordan since US diplomat Lawrence Foley was murdered in the capital of Amman in 2002. Hours after Jordan announced the suspect's arrest, Al Qaeda in Iraq – headed by now-infamous Jordanian militant, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi – claimed...

Arrest of an Iraqi suspect in the attack with the rockets of Aqaba AMMAN - an Iraqi, one of the four suspects sought for the attacks with the rocket of Aqaba (southern), was stopped Saturday evening in Amman, indicated to AFP a sedentary source. "the forces of safety stopped the Iraqi suspect whereas it drove its car", the sedentary source under cover of anonymity indicated. The source did not specify the place of the arrest. Friday morning, two rockets of the Katioucha type were drawn since a cargo warehouse from Aqaba where two ships of the American navy wet...

Jordan rockets miss US Navy ship     Three missiles have been fired from the Jordanian port of Aqaba, missing a US Navy ship but hitting Israel.     Two rockets missed the USS Ashland, an American naval ship docked in the port. A Jordanian soldier died when one of the two missiles hit the dockside. The third missile landed near Eilat airport in neighbouring Israel, causing no injuries. An internet statement, purportedly from a group which says it has links to al-Qaeda, said it was to blame. The statement, allegedly from the Abdullah al-Azzam Brigades, said the attacks...

One of three missiles fired from Jordan (search) narrowly missed a U.S. Navy ship docked at port on Friday but the attack left one Jordanian soldier dead and another wounded. Another missile fell close to an airport in neighboring Israel, officials said. A Jordanian security official said another missile landed near a Jordanian hospital. The U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet (search), based in Bahrain, said two American amphibious ships were docked in Aqaba when a mortar was fired toward them. The vessels later sailed out of port as a result of the attacks, U.S. Navy spokesman Lt. Cdr. Charlie Brown told...

AMMAN, Jordan - Attackers fired at least three rockets from Jordan early Friday, with one narrowly missing a docked U.S. Navy ship and killing a Jordanian soldier. It was the most serious militant attack on the Navy since the USS Cole was bombed in 2000. Another rocket fell close to a nearby airport in neighboring Israel, officials said. Jordanian and Israeli authorities said militants fired the Katyusha rockets from a warehouse in the Jordanian Red Sea port of Aqaba. A group linked to al-Qaida claimed responsibility in an Internet statement. The statement purportedly from the Abdullah Azzam Brigades could not...

Manama, Bahrain -- No US Sailors and Marines of USS ASHLAND and USS KEARSARGE were injured in an apparent rocket attack that occurred while the ships were in the port of Aqaba, Jordan. At approximately 8:44 a.m. local time, a suspected mortar rocket flew over the USS ASHLAND’s bow and impacted in a warehouse on the pier in the vicinity of the ASHLAND and USS KEARSARGE. The warehouse sustained an approximate 8 foot hole in the roof of the building. No Sailors or Marines were injured in this attack. For further questions, please contact Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/Commander,...

AMMAN (Reuters) - Three rockets were fired at two U.S. Navy ships in Jordan's Aqaba port on Friday, but they missed their targets and hit a warehouse and a hospital, killing a Jordanian soldier, and striking the Israeli port of Eilat. A Jordanian security source said authorities were searching for three men in the Katyusha missile attack, which was launched from an industrial warehouse area near the entrance to the city. "We are searching for a Syrian and two Iraqis who are in Aqaba and used Kuwaiti number plates," the source said. Immediately after the attack, the two U.S. amphibious...

Three missiles have been fired from the Jordanian port of Aqaba, missing a US Navy ship but hitting Israel. Two rockets missed the USS Ashland, an American naval ship docked in the port. A Jordanian soldier died when one of the two missiles hit the dockside. The third missile landed near Eilat airport in neighbouring Israel, causing no injuries. An internet statement, purportedly from a group which says it has links to al-Qaeda, said it was to blame. The statement, allegedly from the Abdullah al-Azzam Brigades, said the attacks were the group's first attack in Jordan and were aimed at...

AMMAN, Jordan, Aug. 19 - A rocket was fired early today at two American naval ships docked in southern Jordan, killing a Jordanian soldier and marking the first attack on American military ships in the region in five years, American and Jordanian officials said. A rocket was fired at the same time from apparently the same area at an airport in a neighboring Israeli port, hitting a stretch of road and wounding a taxi driver, news agencies reported, citing Israeli officials and witnesses. A third projectile was fired at a Jordanian hospital around the southern port of Aqaba but did...

JERUSALEM, Aug 19 (Reuters) - An explosion was heard in the southern Israeli port and tourist city of Eilat shortly after an explosion was reported in the nearby Jordanian report of Aqaba, Israel Radio said. Israel's Army Radio said it appeared to be a rocket attack. There was no immediate word of casualties. Police in Eilat said they could not give details. Reuters - BLAST IN EILAT WAS KATYUSHA ROCKET STRIKE, NO CASUALTIES - ISRAEL'S ARMY RADIO Reuters - THREE ROCKETS OR SHELLS FIRED INTO AQABA PORT, CASUALTIES - ISRAEL RADIO

The Source for Navy News   030924-N-9109V-001 Portsmouth, Va. (Sept. 24, 2003) -- Brig. Gen. Richard F. Natonski (right), Commanding General of the Second Marine Expeditionary Brigade, presents an AK-47 rifle to Capt. Chris Hase, the Commanding Officer of USS Saipan (LHA 2), in appreciation for the support the crew gave Marines during Operation Iraqi Freedom. The rifle was confiscated from an Iraqi enemy prisoner of war during the bloodiest day of battle in March of 2003. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate Airman Kyle Voight. (RELEASED)   View Larger Download HiRes   Marine General Thanks Sailors for SupportStory...

-- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld signs order to send additional 35,000 troops to Persian Gulf. Watch CNN or log on to http://CNN.com /AOL Keyword: CNN for the latest news.

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) -- Two of the seven Virginia-based ships that have received deployment orders in the past week pulled away from a Navy pier Sunday as a military buildup continued ahead of a possible war with Iraq. Three of the ships left port Friday, and the USS Ashland and USS Kearsarge left Sunday. The USS Bataan and USS Portland were expected to follow. Together, they can carry a landing force of more than 8,000 Marines. As the Ashland pulled away from its dock, a couple dozen family members waved from a cold, wind-swept parking lot. Kerri Rodriguez wiped...