Proof of Abject Failure of US and NATO Naval Power in Indian Ocean-Admiral Mahan would have been out
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[CPU] STATUS OF SEIZED VESSELS AND CREWS IN SOMALIA, THE GULF OF ADEN AND THE INDIAN OCEAN
ECOTERRA Intl. <office@ecoterra-international.org> Sat, Sep 10, 2011 at 7:20 PM
COUNTER-PIRACY UPDATES
STATUS OF SEIZED VESSELS AND CREWS IN SOMALIA, THE GULF OF ADENÂ AND THE INDIAN OCEANÂ (ecoterra - 10. September 2011)
PROTECTING AND MONITORING LIFE, BIODIVERSITY AND THE ECOSYSTEM IN SOMALIA AND ITS SEAS SINCE 1986 - ECOTERRA Intl.Â
ECOTERRA Intl. and ECOP-marine serve concerning the counter-piracy issues as advocacy groups in their capacity as human rights, marine and maritime monitors as well as in co-operation with numerous other organizations, groups and individuals as information clearing-house. In difficult cases we have successfully served as mediators.Â
DECLARE INTERDEPENDENCE
STATUS-SUMMARY:Â
Today, 10. September 2011Â at 22h45 UTC, at least 31 larger plus 18 smaller foreign vessels plus one stranded barge are kept in Somali hands against the will of their owners, while at least 528Â hostages or captives - including a South-African yachting couple - suffer to be released.
But even EU NAVFOR, who mostly only counts high-value, often British insured vessels, admitted now that many dozens of vessels were sea-jacked despite their multi-million Euro efforts to protect shipping.
Having come under pressure, EU NAVFOR's operation ATALANTA felt now compelled to publish their updated piracy facts for those vessels, which EU NAVFOR admits had not been protected from pirates and were abducted. EU NAVFOR also admitted in February 2011 for the first time that actually a larger number of vessels and crews is held hostage than those listed on their file.Â
Since EU NAVFOR's inception at the end of 2008 the piracy off Somalia started in earnest and it has now completely escalated. Only knowledgeable analysts recognized the link.Â
Please see the situation map of the PIRACY COASTS OF SOMALIA (2011) and the CPU-ARCHIVEÂ
ECOTERRA members can also request the Somali Marine & Coastal Monitor for background info.Â
- see also HELD HOSTAGE BY PIRATES OFF SOMALIA
and don't forget that SOMALI PIRACY IS CUT-THROAT CAPITALISM
WHAT THE NAVIES OFF SOMALIA NEVER SEE:Â
http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/05/fighting_for_control_of_somali.htmlÂ
What Foreign Soldiers in Somalia and even their Officers Never Seem to Realize:Â
The Scramble For SomaliaÂ
PEACE KEEPERS OR BIOLOGICAL WARFARE AGENTS ?Â
SG Ban Ki-Moon (UN) and President Ram Baran Yadav (Nepal) should resign and take the responsibility for 4,500 Haitians having been killed by a Cholera strain introduced by unchecked, so-called UN Peace-Keepers from Nepal into Haiti.
LATEST:Â
STILL OVER 500 SEAFARERS ARE HELD HOSTAGE IN SOMALIA !Â
ECOTERRA Intl. has been the first group to clearly and publicly state that the piracy phenomenon off the Somali coasts can only become an issue of the past again, if tangible and sustainable, appropriate and holistic development for the coastal communities kicks in. Solutions to piracy have to tackle the root causes: Abhorrent poverty, environmental degradation, injustice, outside interference. While still billions are spend for the navies , for the general militarization or for mercenaries or conferences, still no real and financially substantial help is coming forward to pacify and develop the coastal areas of Somalia.
Updates on known cases of piracy - pls see also below these latest news and in the status section.
Â
One Yacht Sailor Presumed Dead, One Rescued - anybody else missing?
MYSTERY & TRAGEDY IN FRENCH GHOST CATAMARAN INCIDENTÂ (ecop-marine)
French-flagged SY TRIBAL KAT with two crew members (name withheld until next of kin are fully informed) was attacked by alleged Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden off Yemen on Thursday, 08. September 2011 in an incident which probably involved one of the sea-jacked Iranian vessels. After the incident a frantic search along the Yemeni and Somali coasts revealed little information.
Since a distress signal was sent on late Thursday from the yacht, the EU NAVFOR warship FGS BAYERN finally located the catamaran off the coast of Yemen. At that time and following an inspection of the yacht the crew could not be found, operation Atalanta stated in a press release today on 10th late night and continued:
"Today EU NAVFOR warship SPS GALICIA, with support from EU NAVFOR warship FS SURCOUF, located and trailed the skiff. SPS GALICIA then forced the skiff to stop. One of crew members was released safely and all of the suspect criminals were detained. The other crew member is believed to have been killed when the suspects boarded the yacht."
"During the operation the hostage was not wounded or injured and all the suspect criminals were detained unharmed," the statement concluded. Other sources revealed that the rescued person is the lady of the French sailing couple and that seven Somali pirates were arrested after their engine was shot up and the boat sunk.
However, many questions remain, which we will follow up in the next issues of our counter-piracy updates.Â
The incident occurred just two days after a Danish family of five incl. 3 children and two deckhands were released from their hostage situation in Somalia after an ordeal of nearly seven months.Â
©2011 - ecoterra / ecop-marine - articles above are exclusive reports and, if not specifically ©-marked , free for publication as long as cited correctly and the source is quoted.
The maritime articles below are cleared or commented. If you don't find a specific article, it most likely was not worth to be republished here, but if you feel we have overlooked an important publication, please mail it to us.
What you always wanted to know about piracy, but never dared to ask:
SEARCH THE MOST COMPREHENSIVEÂ INTERNET PORTAL ON PIRACY
Four missing after French boat found off Yemen - source (Reuters)
Four people were thought to have been kidnapped by pirates after international forces found a French yacht lying unoccupied off the coast of Yemen, a source from the Yemeni coast guard's office said on Friday.
The French Foreign Ministry said earlier in the day that a French-registered boat had been found by a German frigate with no passengers on it after making an emergency call late on Thursday.
"The yacht left Aden on September 4 and we lost contact with them on Thursday until international forces found it off the coast of al-Mahra," the source said, adding that he did not know the crew's nationality.
He added that they had probably been abducted by pirates.
The Al-Mahra governorate is in the east of Yemen and borders the sultanate of Oman.
The deputy director of the coast guard, Abdulrahman Moussa, issued a statement on Yemeni state news agency Saba denying the passengers' disappearance.
He said international patrols had rescued a man and his wife from the yacht.
Shipping and maritime sources say Somali pirates have been using the remote island of Socotra, close to the Mahra coastline, as a refuelling hub and that sea borne gangs have been exploiting political turmoil in Yemen.
Scores of vessels in the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden have been hijacked with pirates making tens of millions of dollars in ransom from commandeering the ships and seizing hostages.
French Foreign Ministry spokesman Bernard Valero said that after receiving a distress call on Thursday night, French authorities contacted the international anti-piracy mission, which dispatched the closest vessel, a German frigate.
"We are a monitoring the situation closely and we have taken precautionary measures that would enable us to handle a development of the situation," Armed Forces spokesman Thierry Burkhard said.
France has eight nationals held overseas, including three aid workers in Yemen, four in the Sahel region and one in Somalia.
Crew of French yacht missing off Yemen: foreign ministry By Philippe Rater (AFP)
A German warship has found a French catamaran adrift in pirate-infested waters in the Gulf of Aden off Yemen with no crew aboard, and their fate is unknown, France said Friday.
Foreign ministry spokesman Bernard Valero told reporters the crew of the yacht had issued a mayday signal, but by the time the frigate Bayern arrived there was no-one on board.
"Following the alert from the crew, we asked our German partners to send one of their ships taking part in Operation Atalanta," Valero said, referring to the EU anti-piracy mission off Somalia.
The 5,600-ton warship found the yacht, but "no-one was on board and we have no certainty about how many people had been aboard nor what may have become of the crew of the catamaran."
A source close to the investigation who asked not to be named said that there had been four people on the yacht according to the radioed distress call.
There were "suspicious marks on board" the yacht which is now being towed to Djibouti for forensic examination by French authorities. France's external intelligence agency DGSE is involved, the source said.
While officials would not speculate on the fate of the missing crew, the waters between Yemen and Somalia are notorious for attacks by pirate gangs, and French yachts have been among the vessels seized in the past.
On Wednesday, Denmark announced the release of a Danish family more than seven months after they had been kidnapped by Somali pirates. A maritime monitoring group and local sources said a large ransom had been paid.
Somali pirates frequently seize crew from merchant ships and pleasure craft in the dangerous waters off the conflict-ravaged Horn of Africa and have taken millions of dollars in ransoms for their release.
According to the watchdog Ecoterra, at least 50 vessels and at least 528 hostages are currently being held by Somali pirates, despite constant patrols by warships from several world powers.
Pirates Attack Yacht off Yemen (YachtPals)
Reports have been coming in that the crew of a French catamaran was captured by pirates off the coast of Yemen yesterday. According to a French foreign ministry spokesman, the sailing yacht issued a mayday call, and by the time Operation Atlanta security forces arrived (in the form of the German frigate Bayern), the yacht was empty, with what were described as "suspicious marks" aboard.Â
 The sailboat is currently being towed in for further analysis. At this time, it is believed that there were four crew members taken captive, and their whereabouts are currently unknown. Mariners with information are asked to contact authorities.
The entire area surrounding the Horn of Africa (Somalia) and the Gulf of Aden are known for pirate activity, and hostages are often taken for ransom. All yachts are advised to avoid this area if possible, and to travel in flotillas if there is no other option. Several yachts have now fallen prey because they felt that the odds were in their favor, and we would point out that this is also true in Russian roulette.
Algerian sailors captured in Somalia are in a critical condition By M.O. (Ennaharonline)
The hostages were able to reach family members by telephone Wednesday and say they are morally and physically tired.
He said that during Ramadan, "the hostages had just a piece of bread every five days."
Sailors criticized, according to their families, the attitude of the Jordanian Charterer "MV Blida" and wonder "when the Algerian government will take them out of this hell."
Ouardia Hannouche, wife of one of the sailors did not hide her fears by saying that her husband had launched Wednesday "an SOS as they (the hostages) will have neither water nor food."
Famine caused by the drought affecting the Horn of Africa affects many parts of Somalia.
The "MV Blida" belongs to the International Bulk Carriers Company (IBC), a subsidiary of Algeria's CNAN Group founded in 2007 and is a joint venture of Saudi-dominated, Algerian law, specializing in shipping homogeneous cargo.
It was carrying 27 Algerians and Ukrainians crew members when it was attacked.
Somali pirates hold hostages some 52 ships and 573 sailors, according to the latest count of the NGO Ecoterra.
Tanzania Ferry Sinking Leaves 240 People Dead; 607 Rescued By David Malingha Doya (Bloomberg) -- Editors: Paul Richardson and Alex Devine.
At least 240 people died when a ferry sank off the Tanzanian island of Zanzibar, a police official said. An additional 607 people who were on the vessel have been rescued.Â
The boat sank at about midnight while en route to Pemba Island from Zanzibar, Police Commissioner Musa Ali Musa said in a phone interview from Zanzibar City, the capital of the Indian Ocean island nation. The vessel may have sunk because it was overloaded, the Nairobi office of Ecoterra International, a maritime environmental advocacy group, said in a statement.Â
"We are concentrating on seeking survivors and perhaps tomorrow we can begin investigating the cause of the accident," Musa said. "We have not got any information about foreigners. All survivors and the dead are local people from Tanzania."Â
Zanzibar, an archipelago that includes the main islands of Unguja and Pemba and at least 51 other islets, is situated about 30 kilometers (19 miles) off the coast of Tanzania. The semi- autonomous Indian Ocean island nation is in a political union with Tanzania. In May 2009, a passenger ferry carrying 50 people capsized after taking water on board as it was traveling from Zanzibar's port at Stone Town to Pemba. At least 20 people died in the accident.Â
Tanzania President Jakaya Kikwete cancelled a planned visit to Canada next week, where he was scheduled to hold talks with Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and declared three days of national mourning.Â
Cargo CarrierÂ
The vessel involved in last night's accident was used to bring cargo from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania's commercial capital, to Unguja before ferrying people to Pemba Island, Musa said.Â
While Tanzania and Kenya have Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centres, their ability to deal with maritime disasters is hampered by a lack of proper equipment and technology, Ecoterra said in an e-mailed response to questions. Last month, Kenya's navy upgraded its capabilities with the return of two refurbished naval vessels, it said.Â
"The response mechanisms along the East African coast for such disasters like vessels in distress and oil spills are still under-developed," Ecoterra said. "In terms of development aid and international assistance, this is a sector where donor governments of the international community could help countries like Kenya and Tanzania improve the situation."Â
Tanzania's worst maritime disaster occurred in 1996 when the MV Bukoba sank on Lake Victoria. While the passenger list showed 443 people were on board the vessel, at least 800 people may have died, according to the www.wrecksite.eu website.
They had escorted a ship to the Straits of Tiran, at the entrance to the Gulf of Aqaba, and were on a yacht taking them back to the Israeli port city of Eilat, when they were approached by an Egyptian naval vessel.
The Israelis panicked, and threw their weapons overboard, arousing the suspicions of the Egyptians, who took them into custody, before releasing them on Thursday morning.
A senior Israeli government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the German Press Agency DPA.Â
CLOSE SHAVE FOR ITALIAN CHOPPER OVER SOMALI WATERS
Italian Navy anti-piracy: shots of firearms against the "Doria" ship helicopter (WAPA)/(Avionews)Â
400 km south of Mogadishu, in the waters near the Somali coast
Today at 6:30am, near Kismaayo (400 km south of Mogadishu), in the waters facing the Somali coast, rebels have set fire against an EH-101 helicopter of the ship "Doria" while on patrol.Â
The Italian Navy aircraft, while on a surveillance flight trying to acquire information on the movements of vessels suspected of acting against commercial traffic in transit, has been hit by a series of shots of firearms causing a fuel leakage thus forcing the helicopter back on the "Doria" ship for technical checks. None of the crew members suffered injuries.Â
"Doria", the command ship used by NATO mission "Standing NATO Maritime Group 1", guided by admiral Gualtiero Mattesi, has been employed in the Indian Ocean for the NATO piracy combat operation "Ocean Shield" since 14th June.Â
The naval aircraft forces continue their operations with the aim to prevent and combat criminal activities against the merchant traffic in the area.Â
South Korean appellate court upholds life sentence on captured Somali pirate (AP)
A South Korean appellate court has upheld a life sentence imposed on a Somali pirate for hijacking a ship and shooting its captain.
Five Somali pirates were captured during a raid on a hijacked South Korean-operated cargo ship in the Arabian Sea in January. The South Korean military operation killed eight pirates. During the raid the ship's South Korean captain was shot and wounded by a pirate.
On Thursday the Busan High Court upheld most of the district court's ruling, though it reduced one pirate's sentence by three years.
Both the pirates and prosecutors have one week to appeal.
Jacob Bendner of the insurance company that organized the return trip says the family of five and the two crew members are "physically doing better than we feared and none needs hospitalization."Â
Bendner said Thursday all seven returned to a secret location in Denmark "in the past 24 hours" and "they want peace."Â
Jan Quist Johansen, his wife Birgit Marie and their three teenage children were captured along with two Danish crew members on Feb. 24 as their 43-foot (13-meter) yacht was seized by pirates in the Indian Ocean.Â
Danish officials have refused to comment on whether a ransom was paid for their freedom.
[See also our exclusive, breaking news about the release in CPU of 06. September 2011.]
The Truth About Somali Piracy By Nuruddin Farah (WSJ)
A BBC caption for a story about the Danish hostages just released by Somali pirates reads that "instability in Somalia has allowed piracy to flourish." This statement took me back a few hundred years, to a time when Danish pirates roamed the sea at will, robbing innocent people of their riches, and their lives too.
Unsuccessfully attempting a satisfactory response, I reread an email recently received from an eminent writer, a close friend of mine, who had just read "Crossbones," my new novel. He mentioned one Lars Gathenhielm, a Swedish pirate, most cruel, but nonetheless highly resourceful. Gathenhielm, the childhood hero of many a Swede about whom fantastic stories were told, was awarded a knighthood for his services to his nation and a street in Gothenburg was named for him. I doubt very much if any of the pirates who held the Danish family will have streets named for them or if they will be rewarded with knighthood. After all, the times have changed and the world is no longer what it used to be.
Please note that I am not for one moment condoning the hostage-taking criminality in which the Somali pirates have engaged. But unlike many peoples of the sea–including the Greeks, the Danes, the Swedes and the English–who saw the lucrative potential of piracy and pursued it as a vocation, Somalia did not engaged in thievery at sea until recently, despite the country's more than 3,000 kilometers of coastline, the longest in Africa.
At the same time, untruths about piracy in Somalia are perpetuated, in print and on TV and radio. When I visited the country, I discovered that Somali pirates do not live the high life, nor do they receive the sums being mentioned, because much of the money stays either in Abu Dhabi or London, where it is banked. True, the state in Somalia barely functions, but that is not the root cause of Somali piracy. It started as a response to illicit plunder of the country's sea resources by ships owned in Europe and Asia, but flying foreign flags of all sorts. The ships would arrive in Somali waters armed for battle, with speed boats, and they would employ fishing methods banned elsewhere, at times dumping nuclear, chemical and other wastes, and at times shooting at the Somalis fishing in the same area.
No doubt there is a great deal of criminality in Somalia, never mind her dysfunctionality and statelessness. But the country remains victim to worse press than she deserves. A Somali I met in Puntland recently told me that the image that comes to him when he thinks of Somalia is that of "a corpse at which vultures are picking. Why doesn't the world let us be – to bury our country in peace?" When he observed that I did not follow his meaning, he said, "Tell them that the origin of piracy in Somalia is but a knee-jerk response to the world's criminal behavior: what with many European countries dumping their chemical and other wastes on our shores; the American drones bombing with immunity, whenever they please; the Arabs messing about with our lives, and what with the Ethiopians and the Eritreans fighting their proxy wars on our land! Just tell them to leave us be!"Â
(*)Â Nuruddin Farah is the author of "Crossbones," just published by Riverhead.
THE OTHER PIRACY
Illegal Fishing Crackdown By Michael Scott Moore
Trans-Atlantic Pact Targets 'Other Piracy' - European tuna trawlers have been implicated, too.
A bilateral deal announced this week between the European Union and the United States aims to fight illegal fishing, a crime blamed for a number of problems in the world's oceans, from fishery collapse to poverty and piracy in Africa. The agreement signed in Washington was thin on details, but environmental groups praised it nonetheless. "We view this as quite positive," said Maria Jose Cornax of Oceana, a conservation nonprofit based in Madrid.Â
EU and US officials have made ringing remarks about illegal fishing without explaining how they might oppose it. "Piracy off the coast of Africa has grabbed headlines in recent years, but there is another type of piracy that has received far too little attention," said a joint statement released in advance of Wednesday's agreement. "Pirate fishing around the world is costing fishermen their jobs and income, and harms the ocean environment."
The EU and US have therefore agreed to cooperate "at the technical, operational and political level," said Dr. Jane Lubchenco, head of the US-based National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), who signed the agreement with Maria Damanaki, the EU's fisheries commissioner.Â
But specifics will have to wait for new laws in the United States, Maria Jose Cornax told SPIEGEL ONLINE. "Our Oceana colleagues in Washington are working on (recommending) concrete measures," she said.
Oceana and other environmental groups hope the US will take Europe's lead in tracing the origins of imported fish. The EU, US and Japan make up the top three consumers of fish in the world, and Oceana would like to see tighter regulation in those three markets, Cornax said. The EU started a strict new certification process in early 2010 which Cornax called "a major step toward illegal fishing regulation."
The Scourge of AfricaÂ
Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU, or "pirate" fishing) has devastated fisheries along the coast of both eastern and western Africa, where European and Asian trawlers sometimes wander to dodge fishing quotas at home. Poachers have been known to fish near countries with weak or nonexistent navies, like Somalia or Senegal, to steal valuable fishing stock.
Somali pirates often cite IUU fishing as one reason they take to the water with heavy weapons. Of course, they tend to hijack cargo ships more often than fishing trawlers, but experts say the roots of Somali piracy lie in 1990s-era attempts to control illegal fishing off the coast.
A chief scientist at Oceana in Washington, Dr. Michael Hirshfeld, argued that good regulation in the US would include better "catch documentation" in the country's ports and government pressure on countries identified by the NOAA as hosts for illegal fishing vessels. The countries named recently by the NOAA include France, Portugal, Panama and China.
Dr. Hirshfeld said two bills before the US Senate could help more accurately track and label fish -- to avoid what's called "fish laundering" in American ports.
"The US cannot mirror the EU regulations, because the US doesn't have a huge fleet of fishing boats," explained Cornax in Madrid. "But it has a lot of fish imported in containers," which are not well-regulated. "For Japan it's the same," she said.
THE NEW GAME:
WHEN HUMAN INTELLECT FAILS: CALL THE UN
Call for UN armed guards (TankerOperator)
The Round Table of international shipping associations has called for the establishment of a United Nations force of armed military guards to tackle the current piracy crisis.
In a hard hitting letter to UN secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon, the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), BIMCO, INTERTANKO and INTERCARGO demanded a "bold new strategy" to curb rising levels of piracy, which have resulted in the Indian Ocean resembling "the wild west".
The letter stated: "It is now abundantly clear to shipping companies that the current situation, whereby control of the Indian Ocean has been ceded to pirates, requires a bold new strategy. To be candid, the current approach is not working."
Regretting the increasing necessity for shipping companies to employ private armed guards to protect crew and ships, the letter continued: "It seems inevitable that lawlessness ashore in Somalia will continue to breed lawlessness at sea."
The shipping industry organisations - which represent more than 90% of the world's merchant fleet – said that they fully support the UN's long-term measures on shore aimed at helping the Somali people but were concerned that these "may take years, if not decades, to have a meaningful impact on piracy."
Asking the UN to bring the concept of a UN force of armed military guards to the attention of its Security Council, the letter said: "The shipping industry believes that the situation can only be reversed with a bold approach that targets the problem in manageable pieces. We believe that an important element in this approach would be the establishment of a UN Force of Armed Military Guards that can be deployed in small numbers on board merchant ships.
"This would be an innovative force in terms of UN peacekeeping activity but it would do much to stabilise the situation, to restrict the growth of unregulated, privately contracted armed security personnel and to allow those UN member states lacking maritime forces - including those in the region most immediately affected - to make a meaningful contribution in the area of counter-piracy," the letter concluded.
Ship industry urges UN to create anti-piracy force By Jonathan Saul (Reuters)
* Growing crisis for merchant shipping at sea
* Somali piracy costing world economy billions of dollars
Shipping industry groups have urged the United Nations to create an armed military force to be deployed on vessels to combat Somali piracy, describing the escalating crisis in the Indian Ocean as being like the "wild West".
The piracy is costing the world economy billions of dollars a year and international navies have struggled to combat the menace, especially in the Indian Ocean, due to the vast distances involved.
The shipping industry, some of whose members already employ private guards, says better armed and increasingly violent seaborne gangs pose a growing threat to vital sea lanes.
In a letter to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon sent last month and published on Friday, the world's four international shipping associations said hundreds of seafarers were being held hostage and 60 merchant mariners had died already due to piracy.
"It is now abundantly clear to shipping companies that the current situation, whereby control of the Indian Ocean has been ceded to pirates, requires a bold new strategy," they said.
"Rather than meeting their obligations under the U.N. convention on the law of the sea, governments have allowed the Indian Ocean to resemble the 'wild West'."
While naval patrols, including vessels from the European Union, the United States and other nations such as South Korea, Iran and Turkey, have curbed the number of attacks in the Gulf of Aden, piracy in the Indian Ocean has continued to rise.
The four associations, the International Chamber of Shipping, BIMCO, Intercargo and INTERTANKO, which represent the majority of the world's ship owners, said the situation could only be reversed with a different approach to supplement long term development work in Somalia.
"We believe that an important element in this approach would be the establishment of a U.N. force of armed military guards that can be deployed in small numbers onboard merchant ships."
"This would be an innovative force in terms of U.N. peacekeeping activity but it would do much to stabilise the situation, to restrict the growth of unregulated, privately contracted armed security personnel and to allow those U.N. member states lacking maritime forces ... to make a meaningful contribution in the area of counter-piracy," they said.
John Drake, senior risk consultant with security firm AKE, said a U.N. naval solution was unlikely to solve the problem.
"It is impossible to patrol the entire Indian Ocean. The body of water is simply too large to protect. Even in the narrow Gulf of Aden, pirate attacks have continued despite the naval presence in the area," he said.
"A blockade of ports may be successful as this will allow naval forces to concentrate their efforts in a very small area of water, but this will antagonise the Somali population and cut off fishermen from their work. It will also be difficult to enforce, both from a practical perspective and potentially from a legal perspective, and if legal barriers are overcome this will likely involve a lengthy process."
Drake said piracy remained a land-based problem.
"It might be a better use of world resources to tackle poverty, famine, the effects of drought and a chronic lack of political and civic institutions on the land in Somalia."
Omani maritime authorities thwart piracy attempt (PortNews)
Omani naval authorities have foiled an attempt by Somali pirates to hijack a Liberian flagged vessel some 34 nautical miles southwest of the country's main container transshipment hub at Salalah, Gulfnews reports. The incident was reported on Friday, and comes less than two weeks after pirates seized a chemical tanker barely two nautical miles from the same container port in one of the most audacious attacks so close to the Omani coast.Following that successful seizure, Oman stepped up naval patrols off its southern and southeastern seaboard, which has witnessed a surge in pirate activity in recent months.
In an official statement issued to local media, the Royal Oman Police (ROP) said authorities rushed to the aid of the Liberian-flagged merchant ship on Friday when it came under attack. While the Royal Air Force of Oman scrambled a surveillance aircraft to the area, a Coast Guard vessel also sped to the site, eventually prompting the pirates to flee.
Meanwhile, in another incident also reported over the weekend, an Omani naval force regained control of a hijacked dhow that had earlier been seized off the Somali coast. According to a security official, a patrolling warship of the Royal Navy of Oman spotted the commandeered dhow in international waters south of Salalah. Warning shots were fired, upon which the alleged pirates ditched their weapons into the sea. Ten Somali nationals were arrested and handed over the ROP for prosecution. The dhow's 11 Asian sailors, who were held prisoner by the pirates, were freed, the statement added.
Netherlands: Shipowners and government in pirate face-off (RNW)
Shipowners are not to get private security to protect their vessels against pirates but leave their protection to the government, a special committee has concluded. The proposal has angered the shipowners, who say it's impractical and needlessly complicated. Merchant ships, the committee proposes, should get temporary military protection. Committee chair Joan de Wijkerslooth:
"We do not say private security is not allowed. All we say is: don't start there. Under the current circumstances, it's much easier for the defence ministry to deploy people, as a sort of temps, for example from private security firms. These people can then be sent along, with the status of temporary soldiers."
Tineke Netelenbos, who represents the Dutch shipowners, dismisses the proposal as impractical. "The government should certify certain private security firms and see to it that shipowners only use those that are certified. That is much more practical than the current roundabout proposal which is going to cause a lot of red tape at the defence ministry.
Heavy weapons Pirates, the committee maintains, can only be deterred with heavy automatic weapons. Temporary soldiers are allowed to use such weaponry, but private security guards are not. That would require changing the law, which would take two or three years. "Does that help the shipowners—now? It doesn't.", De Wijkerslooth warns.
The past few years have seen 250 Dutch requests for additional security. Only a few dozen have been granted. Despite the constant threats, no Dutch ships have been attacked by Somali pirates. De Wijkerslooth says he understands the shipowners' worries.
"Currently, ships sail in convoys or make illegal use of private security guards. That's not the idea: if something goes wrong, shit will hit the fan."
In a reaction, Defence Minister Hans Hillen says: "It's important that the committee has concluded that the use of violence is something for the government to coordinate. But our talks with the shipowners are excellent and we also provide them with marines. So I trust we'll work things out."
Other EU countries are facing the same problem. But Norway does allow private security firms to protect ships. De Wijkerslooth: "There are a few countries that do. I know German politicians are beginning to consider the option too. But then it has to go to the cabinet, and after that it has to become law."
Most of the pirates threatening ships come from Somalia. Are talks being held with Somalia about this? De Wijkerslooth: "No, talks with Somalia are not an option now. The country no longer has a functioning administration, none at all. And even if they really wanted to do something about it, they simply lack the capacity. They have no normal infrastructure. So it's of no use."
Five Somali pirates captured by the Dutch Navy in November 2010 were tried in the Netherlands in August 2011. They were found guilty of hijacking a South African yacht and sentenced to prison terms ranging between 4.5 and 7 seven years. South Africa refused to try the suspects.
Ports should issue armed guard guidelines (TankerOperator)
Ports in regions threatened by piracy should address how they accommodate armed guards and issue clear guidelines to shipowners and operators, a security expert has warned.
Dom Mee, president of Protection Vessels International (PVI) speaking at a conference on piracy organised by SAARPSCO (South Asia and Africa Regional Port Stability Co-operative) in the Seychelles this week, called for ports to provide better guidance to support the provision of armed guard security – including on the storage of arms, weapons licensing and the embarkation and disembarkation of guards.
His plea comes just weeks after the most audacious Somali pirate attack thus far, when the chemical tanker 'Fairchem Bogey' was hijacked while in Omani port waters.
The IMO recently set out guidelines for shipowners and operators to deal with the use of armed guards, but no reference, or guidance was given to the provision of armed guards while in waters under port state control, or while 'landed'.
Mee told the conference: "The recent hijacking in port waters in Oman and other similar attacks serves to remind us of the increasing threat posed to shipowners and operators when they are effectively under the jurisdiction of port state control. If clear guidelines for ports aren't established either by the ports themselves, or the IMO, then the most vulnerable ports may see port calls fall.
"This threat highlights the need for greater involvement of the ports in developing clear guidelines on how security can be provided and provisioned when a vessel is in port waters," he said.
Mee cited the fact that guidelines are already clearly defined in Sri Lanka, Oman, Seychelles, Mauritius, Madagascar and Djibouti pertaining to how armed guards can 'land' and how ports can provide a weapons storage facility.
"Ports, ideally under the auspices of the IMO, should move swiftly to issue guidelines illustrating how they handle armed security when they are entering or disembarking ports, as well as guidance for the storage of weaponry," he warned.
Armed guards are not permitted to operate in territorial waters and it is down to the sovereign state to provide security while vessels wait in the anchorage area.
All ports need to review how they must guarantee the security of shipping waiting to come into port. This may include regular Naval or Coastguard patrols to act as a deterrent to criminals who wish to exploit ships at their most vulnerable.
Mee also pointed to a string of ship arrests in South Africa, which have seen operators fined even when firearms have been declared by the master prior to entering port. This situation cannot continue as it undermines the whole international effort to prevent violence used against mariners transiting the Indian Ocean, he added.
Shipowners are increasingly using armed guards as they see this as the only effective deterrent to the growing proliferation and threat posed by pirates in the Gulf, the Indian Ocean and West Africa.
The US Committee on Foreign Affairs' sub-committee on terrorism, non-proliferation and trade hearing on Confronting Global Piracy (15th June, 2011) confirmed: "It is notable that no vessel with an armed security team embarked has been successfully hijacked."Â
HMS Monmouth tackles piracy in the Middle (Defpro)
Although she's entering the latter stages of her deployment, HMS Monmouth is still hard at work engaging in counter-piracy, counter-smuggling and counter-terrorism operations in the Middle East. Having left the UK on 26 March 2011, HMS Monmouth, or 'The Black Duke' as she is known, has been on patrol across a vast area covering the Red Sea, Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean and the Gulf. The ship has been working with many other nations to counter terrorism, prevent smuggling and to disrupt and deter piracy. Monmouth has also been involved in multinational maritime exercises, working and training with regional navies, and providing important support to UK strategic interests in the region. Since Monmouth exited the Suez Canal in April to relieve HMS Cornwall, she has been extremely busy 'on task', taking part in counter-piracy, counter-smuggling and counter-terrorism operations.
This has seen Monmouth achieving notable success from the moment she arrived in theatre and gaining recognition for her contribution to operations. Since she entered the Red Sea, Monmouth has been monitoring maritime movements. This has enabled the ship's company to more easily identify suspicious activity and to target her investigations at specific vessels amongst the numerous legitimate merchant vessels and fishing boats that she encounters. Monmouth has undertaken numerous 'Alongside Assurance Visits' where she has approached fishing boats and dhows (small local trading vessels) to talk to them and gather information.
This not only helps to understand how people go about their business in the area but also provides them with reassurance that naval assets are helping to maintain their security and safety. Should Monmouth have reason to be suspicious about the nature of a vessel encountered, she conducts a boarding. This involves sending in the ship's Royal Marines and Royal Navy boarding teams to confirm that the vessel's business is lawful and to take details of the crew and any cargo.
This is one of the methods that is used to deter and disrupt piracy, smuggling and terrorist activity. There have also been more direct interactions with pirated vessels. A notable example occurred when, having received intelligence from another warship, Monmouth tracked and intercepted a pirate mothership in the Gulf of Aden. After exhausting the full range of warnings the pirates surrendered and the Royal Marines and Royal Navy boarding teams were able to board the vessel, successfully detaining several suspected pirates and releasing 17 hostages.
This was a particular success as a very capable mothership was stopped from being used by pirates and prevented from carrying out further attacks. Monmouth has also assisted mariners in distress, responding to requests for assistance from vessels for reasons as diverse as to provide urgent medical assistance for a sick sailor to a merchant vessel under attack from armed men.
In the latter case, Monmouth made a high speed approach from over 90 miles (145km) away to assist a 60,000-tonne bulk carrier that had been boarded by six armed men, and the 24 crew had barricaded themselves in the ship's citadel (a secure room onboard). Monmouth arrived ready to tackle any number of scenarios and with very little time to act before it got dark. The ship's Royal Marines and Royal Navy boarding teams were sent across by boat and helicopter, tasked to ensure that the merchant vessel was clear of intruders, who fled as the teams approached, and then released the ship's crew from their refuge, allowing the vessel to proceed safely on her way.
HMS Monmouth's Commanding Officer, Commander Dean Bassett, said: "Since departing the UK in March, HMS Monmouth has been deployed east of Suez helping to maintain security and stability in the region. Our tasking has seen us operating across the Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea and Somali Basin, working to disrupt and deter piracy, prevent smuggling and counter terrorism. "This has been a very active and successful deployment for HMS Monmouth in which every single person onboard has played an important part.
"My ship's company continue to give their best to ensure that Monmouth is ready for the many challenges we face on operations, and I am immensely proud of their commitment and professionalism; they are a credit to The Black Duke and the Royal Navy."
Monmouth has also participated in some important training serials over the past few months, including
