COUNTER-PIRACY UPDATES
STATUS OF SEIZED VESSELS AND CREWS IN SOMALIA, THE GULF OF ADEN AND THE INDIAN OCEAN (ecoterra - 10. September 2011)
PROTECTING AND MONITORING LIFE, BIODIVERSITY AND THE ECOSYSTEM IN SOMALIA AND ITS SEAS SINCE 1986 - ECOTERRA Intl.
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.
DECLARE INTERDEPENDENCE
STATUS-SUMMARY:
Today, 10. September 2011 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 528 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.
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.
Please see the situation map of the PIRACY COASTS OF SOMALIA (2011) and the CPU-ARCHIVE
ECOTERRA members can also request the Somali Marine & Coastal Monitor for background info.
- 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:
http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/05/fighting_for_control_of_somali.html
What Foreign Soldiers in Somalia and even their Officers Never Seem to Realize:
The Scramble For Somalia
PEACE KEEPERS OR BIOLOGICAL WARFARE AGENTS ?
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:
STILL OVER 500 SEAFARERS ARE HELD HOSTAGE IN SOMALIA !
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.
One Yacht Sailor Presumed Dead, One Rescued - anybody else missing?
MYSTERY & TRAGEDY IN FRENCH GHOST CATAMARAN INCIDENT (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.
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.
©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 COMPREHENSIVE 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. 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. "Several hostages are in a critical condition and have low morale," said Ait Ramdane who spoke to his father Wednesday.
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. 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. "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." 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. 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. Cargo Carrier 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. 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. "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." 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. Egypt navy detains, releases Israeli security crew in Red Sea (DPA) Egyptian naval officers briefly detained seven Israeli security employees on a yacht in the Red Sea, but released them after interrogation, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said Friday, after news of the incident was released for publication. The arrests occurred on Wednesday. The Israelis were employees of a private company providing security services for ships sailing through the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, and under threat from Somali-based pirates, the ministry said.
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.
A district court in the South Korean city of Busan subsequently sentenced one pirate to life in prison and four other pirates to between 13 and 15 years behind bars. 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.
Danes Held Hostage in Somalia Back in Denmark (ClaimsJournal) A Danish yachting family released after being held captive for more than six months by Somali pirates have returned to Denmark. 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." Bendner said Thursday all seven returned to a secret location in Denmark "in the past 24 hours" and "they want peace." 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. 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!" (*) 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. Europe and the United States agreed this week to fight illegal fishing together, but the terms were vague. Still, environmentalists have welcomed their intentions, saying they hope tougher regulations will eventually be created to curb large-scale poaching on the high seas. 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. 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. 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 Africa 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."
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 a multinational exercise off the coast of Oman alongside other Royal Navy vessels and ships from the Royal Navy of Oman and the US Coast Guard. She has also seen a number of periods of continuation training with UK teams sent out to help sharpen her war-fighting and damage control skills, and numerous impromptu training serials with UK and coalition vessels and aircraft when the opportunity arose. These occasions not only ensured that Monmouth was kept at peak capability, but also helped build on the UK's relationship with the other nations operating in the region, enhancing interoperability and supporting greater co-operation in the future. In the break between operational patrols, Monmouth has visited a number of ports in the region, allowing the resupply of essential stores, provisions and the movement of personnel. The ship's company were also very grateful for the downtime, taking advantage of the scorching weather to relax and recharge before returning to sea. Port visits also allow some important interaction with host nations. In the Seychelles, the ship's company worked with the local people and authorities, helping out with conservation projects and representing the UK at their National Day parade, as well as providing engineering assistance to their Coast Guard. In Oman, Monmouth demonstrated her boarding methodology and took part in exchange visits with Omani and US vessels. The ship also visited Dubai for an operational stand-down and self-maintenance period, where she undertook essential planned maintenance and husbandry. From the SMCM (Somali Marine and Coastal Monitor): (and with a view on news of events with an impact on Somalia)
The articles below - except where stated otherwise - are reproduced in accordance with Section 107 of title 17 of the Copyright Law of the United States relating to fair-use and are for the purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions held by ECOTERRA Intl.
Articles below were vetted and basically found to report correctly - or otherwise are commented.
Somalis say:
NO TO UN-TRUSTEESHIP OVER SOMALIA OR AU AND IGAD MILITARIZATION
NO to military governance on land or naval governance on the Somali seas.
NO to any threat infringing on the sovereignty of Somalia, especially concerning the 200nm territorial waters, given since 1972, and the 200nm EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone / UNCLOS) already in place since 1989.
NO to any Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) in relief food or Genetically Engineered (GE) seed supplies.
ECOTERRA's ROADMAP GETS POLITICAL BOOST
Years of practical and lobby work did bear fruit at Nairobi Summit
East African famine summit resolves to boost green cover (Xinhua) East African leaders wound up a one-day summit to discuss the drought and famine crisis in the Horn of Africa region, warning failure to tackle it could plunge the region into a general food conflict. The leaders from the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the East African Community (EAC) called for the creation of what they termed "natural buffer zone against disasters" and agreed on a target to boost forest cover by 2017.
"We undertake to promote ecosystem rehabilitation and management with a purpose of building natural buffers against disasters specifically identifying common targets on increasing land cover and improved water resource management," they affirmed in a Nairobi Declaration issued at the end of the summit. The targeted action, the leaders vowed, would be to increase the forestry cover to 10 percent of the region's entire area and robustly improve irrigation cover to an equal measure by 2017 while applying strategies to curb over-grazing. "This (drought) is not about loss of livestock. It is about the loss of lives. It is about the insecurities that come with it, -- health security, national security and food security," South Sudanese President Salva Kiir told the drought Summit here Friday. President Kiir warned that the recent fighting in South Sudan had displaced thousands of people and the two-month old government had no capacity to feed the internally displaced populations in at least four regional states in South Sudan. The African leaders roundly endorsed the Nairobi Action Plan, which identifies short-term, medium-term and long-term measures to deal with the drought and famine. Efforts to tackle the cycle of drought and famine in the region should focus on a shift from rain-fed agriculture and good management of climate-change effects, water and food security, especially the region's under-utilised rain water harvesting. Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said the country has already take steps to boost its humanitarian response to the crisis by moving at least 90,000 drought victims from its Somali region to places with better infrastructure to enhance care and relief responses. "The situation in Somalia remains critical. We must find adequate mechanisms and develop policies to address the long-term effects of climate change," he said. The Summit adopted a raft of measures, including plans to intensify cross-border peace, trade in food products and seeking new strategies to lessen the impacts of global food prices through effective regional policies. They urged farmers and investors in agriculture, especially in fertile areas to boost crop production for effective redistribution to areas facing a food crisis. The measures come amid growing policy differences across the region. Tanzania and Ethiopia have often resorted to slapping blanket bans on the trade in grains to stop uncontrolled exports. New inroads for Ethiopian dictator under humanitarian camouflage???
Ethiopia urges protected aid corridors for Somalia By Martin Plaut (BBC) Using peacekeepers to guard aid routes could prove controversial Ethiopia has called for humanitarian corridors in Somalia to be protected by peacekeepers, so that aid can reach famine-hit areas held by rebels. Prime Minister Meles Zenawi suggested the move at a regional summit in Kenya on the East Africa drought and famine. But UN humanitarian co-ordinator for Somalia Mark Bowden said aid deliveries were increasing and efforts to provide armed protection could jeopardise them. The UN says 750,000 people could die in Somalia's famine within four months.Flow of refugees Mr Meles told Horn of Africa leaders "huge areas" of Somalia remained unreachable. "Many districts are in control of al-Shabab terrorists. We need to urgently support the TFG [transitional federal government], AMISOM [African Union Mission in Somalia] and other forces to create corridors of humanitarian assistance in the liberated areas and beyond," he said. Mr Meles said more food aid needed to be delivered to the affected areas to minimise the flow of refugees from Somalia. Ethiopia shares a border with Somalia. If African Union forces could have expanded their sphere of operation across the country in support of the UN-backed government to facilitate the delivery of aid, they would have done so already.
The AU has spent years battling al-Shabab to take control of Mogadishu.
Islamist fighters forced Ethiopian troops to withdraw from Somalia in 2009 and they are unlikely to take kindly to this suggestion from Ethiopia's prime minister. East Africa correspondent Will Ross says Mr Meles's suggestion is controversial. Observers say using peacekeepers to guard aid routes would undermine negotiations on delivery with the Islamist al-Shabab group. In July, al-Shabab lifted a ban on aid organisations operating inside Somalia, but reimposed it after the United Nations declared a famine in parts of the country. Our correspondent says restrictions imposed by the group have hampered the aid effort and most people agree that food aid is not reaching enough people in Somalia. Regional leaders meeting in Kenya on Friday agreed a solution to the political crisis and conflict in Somalia was needed. In a document - to be known as the Nairobi Action Plan - they pledged to ensure future droughts do not cause such suffering and agreed to invest in arid areas to help livestock-keeping communities become more resilient. Somali famine response 'ineffective' (News24) Aid trickling in to famine-stricken Somalia is ineffective and donors should focus on propping up the war-shattered country's capacity to handle crisis, a Somali official said on Thursday. Famine has spread to six out of eight regions in southern Somalia, with 750 000 people facing imminent starvation, the United Nations says, and hundreds of Somalis are dying each day despite a ramping up of aid relief. "It's [aid] not really as effective as we expected. The reason is we need institutional capacity for us to be able to manage and co-ordinate the aid," Deputy Finance Minister Ali Dirir Farah told Reuters in Addis Ababa. "Unfortunately it seems more emphasis has been given to support local and international NGOs," he added, speaking on the sidelines of a meeting discussing aid for fragile states. Somalia is among the world's most corrupt nations and in past weeks has been dogged by allegations that food aid intended for famine victims was being stolen and sold for a profit. The rest of southern Somalia is expected to slide into famine by the end of the year, the UN says.The lawless country has been without an effective central government since the dictator Siad Barre was toppled in 1991, after which first warlords then Islamist insurgents stepped into the power vacuum. Large swathes of the Horn of Africa nation remain under the control of Islamist rebels who are fighting to overthrow the UN -backed government and have severely restricted relief efforts in their territories. "We would like aid to be guided by exactly what is needed in the country, not from what donors and experts far away are thinking," Farah said of the response to the famine. Joint security committeeSomalia is at the epicentre of a drought in the Horn of Africa region which is affecting over 13 million people. The government blames the famine on the al-Qaeda-linked al Shabaab rebels, who seek to impose a strict version of sharia law on the nation and are bent on striking the region's main economies. At a regional conference in neighbouring Kenya, Somali Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali said the militants had systematically looted grain stores, extorted food and taxes from farmers and prevented starving people from reaching help. "As a region, we cannot afford the luxury of allowing al-Qaeda an opportunity to establish a firm presence in the Horn," Ali told the conference. "We should consider establishing a joint security committee, within the auspices of the [regional] Intergovernmental Authority on Development [bloc]." While a small harvest is expected in January, following rains in October, the situation is unlikely to improve signicantly until the main harvest of 2012 in August. Aid agencies say they are only able to get food aid to 1 million of those in need because the al-Qaeda-affiliated rebel group, al Shabaab, which controls much of the south, will not allow food shipments in. Instead, agencies are using food and cash vouchers which hungry families can exchange for commodities in local markets.Famine exists where at least 20% of households cannot access enough food, over 30% are acutely malnourished and two people per 10 000 die every day, according to the UN. DO EU & US BELIEVE THEY WILL GET WHAT THEY WANT?
EU voices 'great satisfaction' on Somali political 'roadmap' (AFP)
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on Friday urged Somali leaders to press ahead with a "roadmap" to set up a government to replace the transitional body that has failed to bring peace to the country. Somalia's disparate leaders signed the agreement Tuesday in Mogadishu after three days of talks at a heavily-guarded conference venue."I would like to express my great satisfaction" at the deal, Ashton said. "I now urge the Transitional Federal Institutions and all its Somali partners to work effectively to ensure the implementation of this roadmap in compliance with the agreed benchmarks and timelines." The European Union would help with the enactment of the plan and continue to play an active role in Somalia "to alleviate the consequences of the worsening humanitarian situation, restore security and contribute to peace, development and internal reconciliation," she added. Hundreds of people are believed to be dying each day from famine exacerbated by conflict, with three quarters of a million Somalis facing death by starvation, many of them children, the UN said this week. Somalia's prime minister, as well as representatives of the breakaway Puntland region, the central Galmudug region and the pro-government militia Ahlu Sunna Wal Jamaa, signed the deal under UN auspices. The agreement is the latest of over a dozen attempts to resolve Somalia's more than two-decade civil war, with the country split between rival factions and host to pirate gangs who hijack ships far across the Indian Ocean. Constant political wrangles and a bloody Islamist insurgency have undermined Somalia's Transitional Federal Government (TFG), which has been unable to carry out its key mandate of reconciling the country, writing a new constitution and organizing elections. U.S. welcomes Somali road map (UPI)
Washington said it was closely monitoring developments in Somali as the country moves toward ending the tenure for its transitional government. Nearly three dozen delegates from the Arab League, Organization of the Islamic Cooperation and the European Union met this week to discuss ending Somalia's transitional period. The transitional federal government was called on to lead the process that spells out steps needed to end the current political situation by the end of next August. Washington expressed gratitude to international partners for their leadership in Somalia. "The United States urges the transitional federal government to capitalize on the improving security environment to make significant progress in the political realm," a statement from the U.S. State Department read. Somalia hasn't had a functioning central government since the 1990s. The transitional government controlled only a small portion of Mogadishu before al-Shabaab, al-Qaida's affiliate in Somalia, pulled out of the capital last month. Clara Gutteridge, an official at British rights group Reprieve, told the BBC she had evidence from "multiple, concurrent sources" that the CIA was running a secret detention center under the presidential compound in Mogadishu. Somali Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohammed Ali told the BBC the reports weren't credible but said Washington was helping to "improve the security situation in the country." Somalia denies CIA rendition base in Mogadishu (myjoyonline)
The centre is alleged to be under the presidential palace in MogadishuSomalia has dismissed reports that the US runs an underground detention centre where the CIA helps interrogate terror suspects in the capital Mogadishu.
UK rights group Reprieve says it has evidence that the base lies underneath the presidential compound, and that some inmates are as young as 14.
The group says one man was taken there from Kenya and held for 18 months without seeing lawyers - or daylight.
US officials have not yet commented on the claims.
Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohammed Ali told the BBC that he rejected the reports of a detention centre.
"I do not have that information and that information does not exist," he said.
However, he did admit that the US was helping his authority to "improve the security situation in the country".
Islamist militants from the al-Shabab group - which is known to have links with al-Qaeda - control much of southern and central Somalia.
The UN-backed transitional government is largely confined to the capital.
On Thursday, Mr Ali said he was open to talks with al-Shabab.
'Dirty work'
Claira Gutteridge from Reprieve told the BBC's Network Africa programme that she had evidence from "multiple, concurrent sources".
She said one man, Ahmed, had been abducted from the streets of Nairobi 18 months ago and flown to Mogadishu, where he has been kept ever since.
"It's an underground prison in the compound of the presidential palace," she said.
"The guards are Somali but it appears American personnel have access to the prisoners whenever they like."
She said it was not clear how many people were held there, but they were mostly Somali and included children as young as 14.
However there were at least three Kenyans and one who had a Western passport, she said.
She added that it was unclear whether American agents were abducting and transferring - or "rendering" - suspects to Mogadishu, or getting Kenyans and Somalis to do their "dirty work".
In July, the US Nation magazine reported the existence of a detention centre.
The US has carried out several air raids against al-Shabab and alleged al-Qaeda operatives in Somalia in recent years.
It has a military base in neighbouring Djibouti. WESTERN vs MUSLIM AIDFull Comment Forum: The West looks helpless and hopeless in Somalia (NationalPost) Reports this week indicated 750,000 people are in danger of starvation in Somalia. Westerners have heard this before, but in this case the situation is worsened by the active efforts of al-Qaeda-linked fundamentalist fighters to terrorize the region, block aid and threaten foreign workers. Aid groups say they can't even gain access to the areas worst affected. Kenya's president has urged "stern UN action." What's the West to do when faced with ruthless killers willing to murder to prevent food being delivered? Is there any alternative to watching helplessly from afar? Matt Gurney in Toronto: This might be naive — probably is naive — but I wonder if food could be airdropped into refugee camps? Barring that, and given the unlikelihood of "stern UN action" much impressing al-Qaeda, I have an idea. Remember how excited everyone was when a few Arab nations agreed to contribute combat forces to the UN-backed Libyan air campaign? It was going to be this shining moment where the Arab world stepped up to the plate of global obligations and stopped expecting the West to do all the heavy lifting for everyone. Didn't exactly work out that way, of course — the U.S., Britain, France and Canada did most of the bombing, as we've learned since. But maybe a war against an Arab despot was a bit much for a debut performance. So how about this: The Arab League could put together a force to protect aid workers and help secure the distribution of aid supplies to Somalia's predominantly Muslim population. There are lots of reason this won't happen: There would probably still need to be some Western logistical support of such an operation, the Arab countries are probably inclined to keep their armies at home in case the local civilians need machine-gunning, and I'm not convinced anyone cares that much about whether Somalis starve to death, but it would be a worthy idea. Most of the Arab League regimes are no fonder of al-Qaeda than we are, and it would be a good PR gesture — Muslims getting together to help Muslims and fight terrorism. Everyone wins! Barring something like this, given the West's history in Somalia and the generally tapped our nature of our military and financial resources, I suspect those three-quarters of a million people might be pretty much screwed.? Kevin Libin in Calgary: Al Shabab is blocking food aid two reasons: one, they steal the food to feed their own soldiers and in a starving region they can sell the stuff to fund their arms. Two: because they hate anything Western. As al-Shabab's leader explained: "Aid agencies and some countries declared famine and pretend they want to help you. They do so for these reasons: for trade purposes, to convert you from your religion and to colonize you." So, yeah, they're fundamentalist nutters. But they've also reportedly fallen into disarray, and are running out of money. Whether that's true or not, it's hard to say for sure — nothing about what's happening there is easy to categorize: some al Shabab-controlled areas are reportedly getting aid, others aren't, and Kristalina Georgieva, the EU's commissioner for humanitarian aid calls al-Shahab "a dragon with many heads… Negotiating with one head doesn't mean you've received the blessing of the other." But if these extremists are standing between starving people and emergency food supplies, and they're doing it, in part, because they need food and money, then the most expedient response would seem to be simply bribing them. The money would probably have to be funneled through non-Western governments, in order to make it palatable, but it would seem a far easier, probably cheaper, and definitely more realistic plan, than asking the Arab League to intervene (I'm still chuckling at the idea of that one). Sure, the idea of bribing, and arming, Islamist zealots who stone 13-year-old girls for the crime of being gang-raped —or as Sharia law calls it "adultery"— is repulsive. And we might end up empowering an Islamist government that could end up harbouring terrorists, but it's not like Somalia isn't a dangerously failed state already. Anyway, if our paramount goal is to save close to a million people, then we can't afford to worry whether or not we're enabling another Taliban. That's a bridge we'll have to cross when we get to it. Lorne Gunter in Edmonton: They used to be called tin-pot little dictatorships. Now we have fancier names for states like Somalia, such as failed states or rogue states. But whatever we call them, they are brutal, corrupt little countries with little ability to repel a modern, mechanized army. It is relatively easy for the West to impose its will on such countries if it can find some will. But the twin realities are, we can't always summon the will to intervene and even when we can, we can't help everywhere at once. The human tragedy unfolding before our eyes in Somalia is awful, but there will be no "stern UN action." I'm not even sure such a thing exists anymore. Ever since the UN failed to prevent the genocide in Rwanda in 1994, NATO has been doing the heavy lifting around the world. Even in Kosovo and Afghanistan, where the role of the UN was obvious, the international agency was either too split (China blocked all efforts to rein in Serbia) or too politically correct (don't offend Muslim states) to take action. So NATO was left to intervene. In Darfur, a UN force could have prevented the deaths of hundreds of thousands simply by standing between the poor, unarmed Darfurians and the Sudanese government-backed Junjaweed militia. But the UN couldn't even manage that. And NATO was already overstretched. It probably couldn't have found the 50,000 or so troops needed to end the violence and protect aid lines. It's the same in Somalia. What's going on is very bad, but the UN won't act, NATO can't act (not with mission in Afghanistan and Libya still ongoing) and the United States, which sometimes acts alone, hasn't the budget nor the manpower for unilateral action. This is likely a case where nothing is going to be done because the problem is intractable and the solution too complex for a Western world weary of 10 years of intervening in other hellholes. Matt Gurney: We might have to pull out all the stops and deploy Bob Geldof and whatever rock musicians we can scrape up. Because we're not simply going to hand over money — which is at as much of a premium as troops these days — to the Somali militants. The Arab League idea can't/won't do anything. NATO is busy elsewhere. The idea of the U.S. unilaterally going into Somalia is about as likely as a combined Arab-Geldof force rolling in at the head of a UN armoured column. This is why you can't take anyone with pie-in-the-sky dreams of global organizations and world armies and international law all that seriously. Nations will always see to their own interests first, and no one is served by helping Somalia except the poor Somalis. And this is a pretty clear cut case: There's not a lot of nuance when Islamist terrorists deny starving people food. Even with that moral clarity, the world still can't or won't act. Anyone who thinks otherwise should be tried for gross stupidity by the International Criminal Court … not that they'd ever be able to lay charges or make them stick, of course. Kevin Libin: Hold on…we wouldn't we hand over money to Somali militants? Why the heck not? The U.S. funded Afghanistan's Mujahadeen to fight their common Soviet enemy, and Israel helped Hamas in its early years as a means to weaken the PLO. Political consistency is nice when you can afford it, but sometimes more immediate, more practical matters simply take priority. The U.S. has already pledged more than $100 million to Somalia, the Canadian government another $40 or so million in donation matching, and millions more is coming from other countries. If the aid isn't getting food to those who most need it, then let's spend a fraction of that cash on greasing the palms of the right people to ensure that it does get food to those who most need it. The Arabs write cheques to crazy Islamists all the time, and they've certainly got cash to spare. If they won't pitch in with a security force (still chuckling) then they can at least make themselves useful by buying off the problem. Lorne Gunter: Yeah, let's fund the Somali Islamists they way we funded the Afghan Islamists, after all that turned out well. The Mujahadeen made way for the Taliban, who turned Afghanistan into an al Qaeda spa and planning centre from where they launched the 9/11 attacks we are commemorating this weekend. Remember, too, that much of the money for the Taliban and al Qaeda DID come from Arab countries and didn't a) improve the lot of ordinary Afghans or b) make the West safer. I'm sorry, but it would be better to let the Somali famine go untreated than to give the al Qaeda affiliate there money to secure their grip on the country and become the new hosts for terror recruits and plotters. Despite the fact that the West, technically, has the might to solve each of the world's humanitarian problems, it lacks the resources to solve them all at once. Some will simply have to go without our intervention. African, European leaders blames int'l community for famine in Horn of Africa (KUNA) Leaders and senior officials from African and European countries, and international organizations on Friday blamed the international community for not being prepared for the drought which caused famine in the Horn of Africa. Drought in the Horn of Africa happens once every 10 years and is followed by floods "so it is necessary to be prepared for these climate changes," the participants said in Nairobi Declaration at the conclusion of a two-day summit on famine in Horn of Africa. Summiteers approved a strategic plan of action aimed at addressing drought and severe water shortage in the Horn of Africa.They said this action plan would be a roadmap for solutions in that region. The Declaration will be referred to a high-level meeting to be held on sidelines of the UN General Assembly meetings in New York. Kuwait was represented by its Ambassador to Kenya and permanent envoy to The UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT), Yaqoub Al-Sanad. He was representing Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Dr. Mohammad Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah. The participants in the summit said countries' non-commitment to addressing climate change was one of the major causes of drought in the Horn of Africa this year, the worst in 60 years, which hit around 13 people in Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti and Uganda. Famine is killing many people every passing day.Many speakers noted that Somalia suffered from corruption, civil wars, lack of a central government and extremists. This combination, they said, forced the Somali people to flee to refugee camps in Kenya, Djibouti and Ethiopia. The participants called on the UN Security Council to provide further support for the African Union (AU) forces in Somalia to restore order in the troubled country. On the sidelines of the summit, Kuwait's Ambassador Yaqoub Al-Sanad met with Somali President Sheikh Sharif Ahmad and hoped the humanitarian aid sent by the State of Kuwait were delivered to the people in need. Ahmad praised the Kuwaiti aid and said many people were benefiting from them.Crossing the Somali border - BLOG DAY 5 - (RNW) On Tuesday our field team had arranged to meet with the Mandera District Commissioner in order to obtain a border crossing permission. Mandera is a town in the North Eastern Province, Kenya, close to the Ethiopian and Somalian border. We arrived at eight in the morning at the DC's office. He wasn't in. When he finally arrived, he briefed us on the refugees' situation in Somalia. He told us to sign the guestbook. I noticed that 874 visitors had done so before me. The DC accompanied us to the border to ensure that we would be safe. At the Kenyan immigration office we reported the aim of our travel. The immigration officials informed us that the border was officially closed. At the same time, however, there were no restrictions for people crossing, but we would be responsible for ourselves. I thought he was joking, but he wasn't. The border gate had no sign to indicate that you were entering Somalia. I asked my colleagues whether we were in Somalia and they told us we were. Suddenly I felt different, as if I was waking up, and I looked around. I saw donkey carts, women carrying firewood on their heads, men dressed in traditional men's skirts and all sorts of other traditional Somali things I had been missing for so long. We drove on and after 25 kilometers we arrived at the first refugee camp, Beled Amin in the town of Beled Hawo. The whole landscape was grey, dry and dusty. I saw skeletons of dead animals, destroyed houses and mosques, and adults and children in search for food. In the camp we were surrounded by people who thought we had food for them. I started to talk to the women around me and asked them about their daily life and how long they had been living in this camp. One mother's story touched me most. She had a small girl on her back. The child was malnourished and didn't seem to be as old as the mother told me she was. I asked her if she had any other children. She had given birth to six more, three of whom had died on their way to the refugee camp. The woman said that she had left two of the children behind alive, because they wouldn't have made it. "I left them behind to save those who could still walk." The woman was thin and you could see the pain on her face. I asked her to show me her house and she did. It was a small hut with no furniture or equipment. She told me that there was no water and no food. I understood her plight and suffering; I'm a human being and her fellow countrywoman. The reason for me to go to Somalia was to see the suffering of refugees with my own eyes. The more I listened to the woman's story, sitting in her shabby hut, the more emotional I became. All the stories that I heard in the camps were almost all the same. Everybody had walked a long distance, sometimes as far as 350 kilometers. Most of the refugees had lost family members on the way, especially children. Some of them told me they even had eaten human flesh to survive. (*) Fatumo Farah is the director of the Netherlands-based development organization HIRDA and a mother of three children. After 18 years she returns to her country of origin, Somalia, to assess the situation of drought victims in the southern central part of the country, especially in the Gedo region, one of the most affected areas. INTERVIEW-Negotiations with Somali rebels an option-PM By Sahra Abdi and Richard Lough (Reuters) * Somali PM says govt has held informal talks with al Shabaab * Says too early to talk incentives, conditions * Roadmap can be implemented if donors stump up cash* Says region working together get famine aid into rebel areas Somalia is open to talks with al Shabaab's top commanders and informal discussions already held suggest a willingness among some militants to lay down arms and negotiate, the country's prime minister said on Friday. Somalia's beleaguered government is desperate to consolidate security gains after the al Qaeda-linked rebels retreated from the capital Mogadishu last month, as it faces the task of holding elections by August, 2012. "We are open to dialogue with ... any organisation that's going to reach (out) to us, work with us to bring peace and stability to Somalia," Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali told Reuters. "We don't have formal talks with (al Shabaab) but here and there we talk to them and maybe there is some willingness from some of them to lay down their arms and negotiate," Ali said in an interview. It was too early, he said, to talk about conditions on negotiations or what incentives the government might offer the militants, whose bloody four-year insurgency has led to the deaths of tens of thousands of Somalis. Some outside experts say al Shabaab is at its weakest since their rebellion was born from the ruins of another hardline Islamist group in 2007, plagued by deepening internal rifts and short on finances. "You don't talk to foot-soldiers, you negotiate with leaders. The incentive is deal with us first and we will talk later," said Ali, previously a professor of economics in the United States before he joined the U.N.-backed government. Talk of deal cutting with the rebels may unsettle some Western powers who oppose negotiating with an Islamist rebel force whose ranks have been bolstered by foreign fighters linked directly to al Qaeda. PITFALLS DOT ROADMAPSomali leaders adopted a roadmap this week designed to lead to elections within a year and end a string of fragile transition governments that have failed to bring peace or meaningful political reform to the anarchic Horn of Africa nation. Pitfalls dot the way ahead, not least the reluctance of Somalia's political class to place national interests above clan, rampant graft and the Islamist insurgency that rages on across swathes of southern and central, analysts say. Ali, however, was confident a new constitution would be ratified by July 1, 2012, ahead of presidential and parliamentary elections by Aug. 20."Somalis are ready to move on. We will make sure this roadmap is met, provided the international community comes up with the (financial and security) resources to meet these obligations." Somalia's spending is heavily funded by external donors as its tax base is effectively restricted to Mogadishu where custom dues from the sea port and airport provide the bulk of revenues. "A roadmap without resources is a road to nowhere," he said.Ali's government, and the African peacekeeping force propping it up, have also requested extra troops to secure Mogadishu and quash the Islamist rebellion nationwide. Ali spoke to Reuters in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, as regional heads of state gathered in the east African country for an emergency regional summit on the famine that the U.N. says is killing hundreds of Somalis daily. Some 750,000 people, mostly in al Shabaab-held areas, face imminent starvation, according to U.N. estimates.Ethiopia's Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has said the region's IGAD bloc is ready to contribute to "cross-border operations" that "expand the zone of stability" to ensure food aid reached hungry Somalis in rebel controlled regions. Ethiopia, whose forces routed an Islamist administration in power in Mogadishu in early 2007, makes regular incursions into Somalia to protect its border but is thought not to be keen to deploy deep inside its neighbour again, analysts say. The plan has raised concerns among aid groups that aid corridors could be a pretext for military intervention.Ali said he was not aware of Meles' comments. "As far as security arrangements with neighbouring countries, we work together on defeating this menace, Shabaab, and also to make sure the food aid reaches the people who need it the most," he said.
Somalia Keeps Plucking Its Leaders from Overseas Obscurity By Uri Friedman (TheAtlantic) There's a story making its way through the British press today about Mohamed Ibrahim, a 64-year-old north London test prep teacher who recently informed his headmaster that he wouldn't be returning to school this year because he'd unexpectedly been appointed as Somalia's deputy prime minister and minister for foreign affairs. The headmaster, Richard Kolka, told The Telegraph that he had no idea he was employing someone who was such an important figure in his native Somalia. "He was always such a humble guy," Kolka explained. "I was gobsmacked." Ibrahim, pictured above in late July at emergency talks on Somalia's drought and famine in Rome, promised to stop by the school when he passes through London after attending a U.N. General Assembly meeting in New York later this month. We imagine his students might see him a bit differently this time around. It's a fascinating tale, but also a familiar one. Somalia's U.N.-backed Transitional Federal Government, which controls little more than the capital, Mogadishu, has a penchant for recruiting Somalis living modestly abroad to serve as top government officials in a country that hasn't had a functioning central government since 1991, when many of the recruits went into exile. Last month, the Buffalo News ran a story about Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, who had returned to his cubicle and job as a compliance officer at New York's Department of Transportation in Buffalo after serving a nine-month stint as Somalia's prime minister. Mohamed, like Ibrahim, had been offered his post unexpectedly after traveling to the U.N. in New York to interview with Somalia's president, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed. His only political experience was working on campaigns in Buffalo. When Mohamed (meeting with Italy's Silvio Berlusconi on right) was eventually forced out of his position in a power struggle, he requested that his friend Abdiweli Ali, an economics professor at Niagara University in Niagara County, New York, succeed him, at least until a permanent replacement is found (Ali's Niagara faculty bio currently reads, "Dr. Ali has been appointed Prime Minister of Somalia and is currently on leave," but his CV hasn't been updated). Yes, you read that right. Western New York is becoming an improbable breeding ground for Somali leaders. The stories just keep coming. Maryan Qasim, Somalia's Minister for Women's Development and Family Affairs, had been working as an English primary school teacher in Birmingham for over 20 years before returning last year to Somalia, where she had worked as an obstetrician and gynecologist until 1991. "My family said, 'You're mad,'" she told the BBC at the time. "But my country needs me." Mohamed Nur, pictured on right, resigned from his job as a business adviser to a local London council around the same time in order to become Mogadishu's mayor, having flirted with politics only once before during a failed attempt to win a Labour council seat in Camden. Abdulkareem Jama left a six-figure salary in Washington, DC for a low-paying position as Somalia's Minister of Information. Abdirashid Hashi, a journalist and book publisher from Canada, is now Somalia's Minister of Public Works and Reconstruction. There's a method to all this madness. The Globe and Mail explains that Somalia is trying to "solve its massive problems by luring home a technocratic elite of educated exiles from the Somali diaspora." The theory, the paper explains, "is that these exiles are not beholden to extended networks of friends and family in Somalia, so they are less prone to corruption and less likely to be loyal to the Somali clan leaders and warlords who have controlled most of the country since the civil war began in 1991. But some analysts worry that the exiles will be weaker in influence, lacking local support and knowledge of the country." Others criticize their lack of political experience. The Washington Post adds that Somalia isn't the only country to recruit top officials from overseas. In war-torn countries like Afghanistan, Iraq, and Liberia, the paper explains "returning immigrants have entered politics and built businesses, providing linchpins amid war and instability. Unlike those in previous generations, these immigrants remained intimately connected to their homelands via the Internet and satellite television." "None of us requested this job," Hashi tells The Globe and Mail. "We were drafted. The prime minister asked us to serve. We're not doing it for the glamour of the job." Somalia's waiting game (AlJazeeraInsideStory) The politicians are talking and the international agencies are pledging aid, so why then are Somalis still dying? Somalis are tired of waiting for progress. Those were the sentiments expressed by Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, the Somali prime minister, at a meeting of political leaders in Mogadishu, the Somali capital. The politicians had gathered to discuss the formation of a new government to replace the fragile Transitional Federal Government (TFG). But even as the talking goes on, Somalis are continuing to die - victims of drought, famine and decades of war. International aid has been pledged, but the UN is warning that the famine is spreading. So why is the aid not reaching those most in need? And how can aid agencies operate while fighting rages?Inside Story, with presenter Felicity Barr, discusses with guests: Abdullahi Godah Barre, the Somali minister for Planning and International Cooperation; Joachim Delville, the head of the Somalia Mission for Medecins Sans Frontieres; and Rozanne Charlton, the UNICEF country representative to Somalia.
Are aid groups honest about the barriers to helping Somalia? By Megan Rowling (AlertNet/Reuters) British medical charity Merlin has just announced it's planning to expand its health care services in famine-hit Somalia, despite the challenges of operating amid ongoing conflict in the Horn of Africa nation. The aid group will increase its number of health facilities there from 24 to 47, and the number of mobile clinics from four to 35. "There is no doubt that the situation is critical, and escalating armed conflict between rival groups has made expanding our services in both the South Central and Puntland regions particularly difficult," Merlin's Chief Executive Carolyn Miller said in a statement. "Yet, despite the increased security risks, Merlin's medical teams are committed to reaching more people and are working around the clock to address the unmet health needs." Since the start of the year, Merlin's medical experts have screened over 20,000 children, pregnant women and young mothers, finding nearly a third to be severely or moderately malnourished. They have also vaccinated more than 3,000 children for measles, diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus, conditions that could be fatal for those already weak with hunger. Having operated in Somalia since 2004, Merlin's network of strong relations with local communities has enabled it to deliver medical expertise in demanding conditions, it says. In the last few weeks, teams have held meetings with community leaders in the south-central region to enlist support for Merlin's plans, and communities have been asked to help with activities, including staff recruitment. "We are committed to stay on, undaunted and determined," Miller added. DROP IN THE OCEAN? Four million Somalis are said to be in crisis. Given that insecurity is limiting international aid groups' activities and some have been banned from territory controlled by Islamist rebels, to what extent are they actually able to help? "We know we are not yet fully meeting the enormous needs the Somali people are facing," the U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Somalia, Mark Bowden, said in Nairobi this week, while stressing that additional funds are now enabling international and local agencies to scale up their work in famine-hit regions. Around 1.2 million people received food assistance in August, for example. That's up from 750,000 in July, but still only covers just over a quarter of those who are going hungry. Merlin's move to expand its clinics follows comments from a top official at another medical aid group, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), who accused other agencies of "glossing over the man-made causes of hunger and starvation in the region and the difficulties in addressing them." Unni Karunakara, president of MSF's International Council, wrote in the UK's Guardian newspaper last Friday that many aid and media organisations have portrayed Somalia's emergency in "one-dimensional terms," ascribing it largely to the severe drought affecting large parts of East Africa. "But only blaming natural causes ignores the complex geopolitical realities exacerbating the situation and suggests that the solution lies in merely finding funds and shipping enough food," he said. He added that it's the war between hardline Islamist rebels and the transitional government, backed by the international community, "that has kept independent international assistance away from many communities." In large parts of the country there is virtually no access to health care, and the conflict makes it hard for medical humanitarian organisations to ramp up their activities and make an impact, Karunakara said. Nonetheless, MSF – which has been working in Somalia for two decades – has projects in nine locations, some inside rebel-held territory, and is feeding 8,000 acutely malnourished children. "Providing aid in Somalia today is about as grim as it gets," Karunakara wrote. "Our staff are at constant risk of being shot or abducted. And we may never be able to reach the communities most in need of help, or have to compromise some of our independence when we do reach them." With the pressure on to raise more money for the emergency response, he suggested that not all aid agencies seem to agree honesty is the best policy. US 'opposed Kenya on Somalia buffer zone' By Kevin Kelly (DailyNation) The United States strongly opposes Kenya's effort to establish a buffer zone in southern Somalia, a leaked diplomatic cable shows. In the December 2009 message recently posted by WikiLeaks, a US State Department official is said to have "forcibly underscored" Washington's concerns over reports that Kenya was "recruiting and training an ethnic Somali force as part of a 'Jubaland' initiative". US deputy Assistant Secretary of State Karl Wycoff expressed America's position to Foreign minister Moses Wetang'ula at a meeting in Djibouti, the cable indicates. Mr Wycoff emphasised to Mr Wetang'ula that the Jubaland move "is a bad idea that would more likely add to Somalia's instability than to help stabilise the country". "Wetang'ula defended the initiative by noting that it was an evolving concept and that Kenya had carefully coordinated every aspect of it with the TFG (Somalia's Transitional Federal Government)", the cable says. The minister is said to have insisted nearly two years ago that the al Shabaab insurgency was "weak". He recalled during the Djibuouti talks that Ethiopian troops had marched into Mogadishu in 2006 "like a hot knife through butter". According to the cable, Mr Wetang'ula further said that the Kibaki administration hoped that the Kenyan-backed effort to defeat al Shabaab militants in southern Somalia would "cage in the Hawiye", Somalia's largest clan. The US should not only criticise Kenya's plan but should also present its own proposals, the Foreign minister is said to have suggested. "I sincerely believe that good ideas should give way to better ideas," he said. Kenya could in any event no longer afford to sit on the sidelines, Mr Wetang'ula stressed. The threat of a major terrorist attack in Nairobi was increasing every day, he warned. Difficult to implement The cable also reports on Mr Wetang'ula's acknowledgment that "some excited Kenyan military officers" had "bungled the earlier phases" of the Jubaland initiative. The Jubaland plan had also been difficult to implement, Mr Wetang'ula added, because some Kenyan politicians of Somali ethnicity "saw any effort to weaken al Shabaad as an 'Ethiopian plot'". The Foreign minister voiced confidence, however, that the plan would succeed, the cable reports. A Human Rights Watch report last month noted that Kenya's move to establish an 80-kilometre-wide buffer zone on the Somali side of the border would also allow Kenyan officials "to make the argument that Somali refugees could stay there instead of coming into Kenya". Somalia militia kidnaps Kenyan soldiers By Yarrow Hassan (AfricaNews) An Islamist militia in Somalia have claimed they kidnapped two Kenyan soldiers near the country's shared border of Dobley. The al-Shabab militia posted a statement on their website saying they caught the two men on a surveillance mission near the Somali town of Dhobley. There was no way to immediately verify the militants' claims since Kenyan officials remained tight lipped over the issue.
A thin sliver of southern Somalia along the Kenyan border is held by a militia allied to the weak U.N.-backed government, which is fighting al-Shabab.
Kenyan assistant Minister for defence Nkaissery said Evans Mutoro and senior sergeant Jonathan Kipksgei Kangogo in the company of sergeant Said Abiaziz were on a military re-supply mission in Wajir county of North eastern province in the border of the war-torn Somalia.
The assistant minister said the kidnapped soldiers have gone missing on July 24 during an operation mission with Somalia.
The weak Somalia government receives extensive support from Kenyan Government who considers al-Shabab a security threat.
The Kenyan Government has deployed its security officers to man the porous border to avert the constant threat posed by the al-Qaeda linked group al-Shabab. Food Emergency:
How the World Bank and IMF Have Made African Famine Inevitable By Rania Khalek (AlterNet) Lending policies pushed by the World Bank and IMF transformed a self-sufficient, food-producing Africa into a continent vulnerable to food emergencies and famine."Why, in a world that produces more than enough food to feed everybody, do so many – one in seven of us – go hungry?" -- Oxfam Famine is spreading like wildfire throughout the horn of Africa. As 12 million people battle hunger, the UN warns that 750,000 people in Somalia face imminent death from starvation over the next four months, in the absence of outside intervention. Over the course of just 90 days, an estimated 29,000 children under the age of five died in Southern Somalia, with another 640,000 children suffering from acute malnourishment. In the rush to find a culprit to blame for the tragedy unfolding in East Africa, the mainstream news outlets attributed the cause to record droughts, a rise in food prices, biofuel production and land grabs by foreign investors with an added emphasis on the role of the Somali terrorist group Al-Shabaab. Yet these factors alone are not responsible for the famine; instead they have intensified an already dire hunger crisis that has persisted in Sub-Saharan Africa for decades, thanks to lending policies pushed by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) that transformed a self-sufficient, food-producing Africa into a continent dependent on imports and food aid, leaving the continent vulnerable to food emergencies and famine. Since 1981, when these lending policies were first implemented, Oxfam found that the amount of sub-Saharan Africans surviving on less than one dollar a day doubled to 313 million by 2001, which is 46 percent of the population. Since the mid-1980s, the number of food emergencies per year on the continent has tripled. According to Oxfam International spokesperson Caroline Pearce, the IMF and World Bank structural adjustment programs of the '80s and '90s led to "huge disinvestments in the agricultural sector." Pearce concludes, "What we're seeing now in poor agricultural systems partly relates to those kind of policies. In many cases, we're actually calling for things to be reestablished that were dismantled under structural adjustment programs in the past." Yet the impoverished countries of Africa, imperiled by mass starvation, continue to pay for a "free market" agenda, and it's costing them their lives. From Food Abundance to Mass StarvationWalden Bello, reporting for Foreign Policy in Focus, observes that Africa was self-sufficient in food production after declaring independence from its colonial rulers in the 1960s. Yet today, hunger and famine in Africa have "become recurrent phenomena" across the continent. According to BBC analyst Martin Plaut, Africa was also a food net exporter between 1966 and 1970, with an average of 1.3 million tons of food exported each year. In stark contrast, almost all of today's African countries are dependent on imports and food aid, a dramatic shift that took less than 40 years to transpire. Which begs the question: how did an entire continent go from being a net food exporter to a net food importer, from food abundance to mass starvation, in such a short period of time? In her book The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, Naomi Klein details how global power players use times of crisis and chaos as a pretext for imposing destructive free-market policies that advance the interests of the wealthy. As far back as the 1970s, economists inspired by free-market guru Milton Friedman were inspiring U.S.-backed coups and military juntas to push an unpopular radical free-market agenda onto the unwilling populations of countries like Chile, Brazil and Argentina. But Klein highlights a significant shift in strategy that took place in the mid-1980s, when economists recognized that a financial crisis "simulates the effects of a military war—spreading fear and confusion, creating refugees and causing large loss of life" -- the same shock-inducing conditions that left societies ripe for disaster capitalism. Regional leaders to develop disaster resilience strategy By PPS/PMPS (KBC) Leaders from the Horn of Africa region have resolved to develop the Horn of Africa Regional Disaster Resilience and Sustainability Strategy Framework to reduce the impact of disasters in the region. In a communiqué issued at the end of a one-day Summit on the Horn of Africa Crisis that was read by Foreign Affairs Minister Moses Wetangula at the United Nations Complex at Gigiri, the leaders also agreed to create and support a Multi-donor Trust Fund for drought and other disasters that will be anchored in the IGAD secretariat. The summit whose theme was "Ending drought emergencies: a commitment to sustainable solutions" was attended by President Mwai Kibaki, Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania, Salva Kiir of South Sudan, Sharif Sheikh Ahmed of Somalia and Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia while Burundi and Uganda were represented by their ministers for International Cooperation and Foreign Affairs respectively. The leaders also resolved to ensure efficient utilization of water resources in the region under existing and future co-operative frameworks. They encouraged the shift from reliance on rain-fed agriculture to irrigation as a measure to addressing food shortages and improving food security. The leaders also reaffirmed their support to the Dry Land Initiative that has been launched by six Horn of Africa countries namely: Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan and Uganda to promote integrated rural development. They also decided to integrate drought risk reduction and climate change adaptation into development planning and resource allocation frameworks. On peace and security, the leaders resolved to intensify cooperation in promoting cross-border peace, trade and mobility. They commended the governments and people of Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya for receiving, hosting and assisting thousands of Somali refugees affected by conflict and famine despite facing a drought situation. The summit also called on the United Nations and the international community to consider enhancing the mandate of AMISOM from peace keeping to peace enforcement and deploy UN Peace Keeping troops to assist in stabilizing Somalia. On his part, Prime Minister Raila Odinga said that the international community has the responsibility to fulfill its obligations in mitigating the effects of climate change in the least polluting countries. Noting that climate change presented a grave threat to the stability and prosperity of countries in this region, Kenya included, Raila said it was unfortunate that those suffering most from human induced climate change crisis are the least responsible . He pointed out that populations in arid and semi arid areas contributed essentially nothing to climate change and cited Kenya, saying emission from the country is itself far below the global average of 7 tonnes of carbon dioxide. Raila called for lasting solutions to the underlying causes of drought emergencies saying populations in the horn of Africa must re-orient their thinking and resources towards the long term so that crisis does not happen again. The lasting solutions, he noted, included having functioning infrastructure to facilitate marketing, promote stability and reduce the cost of doing business. And added, "They mean investment in our education and health systems to reach those who are currently un-reached by unconventional models of service delivery ,they mean developing and scaling up the adoption of renewable energy technologies and taking advantage of the arid lands in solar, wind and biogas." He went on to say that lasting solutions required that efforts be renewed to stamp out the curse of inter-communal violence and an array of technical interventions that will build more sustainable livelihoods including boosting livestock, crop and fodder production and harvesting rainwater and expanding irrigation. "All these investments will yield the greatest impact if we also strengthen the institutional framework through which they are planned, financed and delivered, at both global and national levels," he said. The Prime Minister expressed confidence that Kenya would soon have a National Drought Management Authority in place that will give the requisite leadership in drought management. He said, "it will be a permanent, professional institution that will be thinking about drought preparedness and mitigation well before signs of stress are evident." At regional level, Raila said there was need for effective modalities of sharing boundary resources and managing border controls to improve security. "There are positive experiences in our various countries from which we can end cross-border inter-communal violence and manage shared resource better," he added. WorldRiskReport 2011 - are disasters preventable? (UNU-EHS) Earthquakes, floods, droughts, storms: disasters seem to occur unexpectedly and with unimaginable force. But why do some countries better succeed than others to cope with extreme natural events? The WorldRiskReport 2011 helps to evaluate the vulnerability of societies to natural hazards. On behalf of Alliance Development Works, UNU-EHS has developed the WorldRiskIndex and calculated risk values for 173 countries worldwide.
Background & highlights of the reportThe WorldRiskReport 2011 helps to evaluate the vulnerability of societies to natural hazards. Using world maps to visualize, it shows on the one hand where the probability of a natural hazard to occur is particularly high; on the other hand it is shown in which countries the population can cope with these events especially good or bad. The central element of the WorldRiskReport, the concept of the WorldRiskIndex, was developed by the United Nations University Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) in Bonn/Germany, in cooperation with the Alliance Development Works and its partners. Alliance Development Works also is editor of the report. The WorldRiskReport 2011 consists of the index, a main topic and case studies. The index illustrates the risk of various countries and regions to be hit by a disaster. Special emphasis is put on exposure, susceptibility of the population, coping capacities and adaptation strategies. The main topic of the report is "governance and civil society". Here, the risk factors government failure and on-site risk management are analysed, as well as the possibilities to call for governmental responsibility. Case studies illustrate the main topic. you will find additonal graphs, maps and figures for download. (*) The United Nations University (UNU) is the academic arm of the United Nations (UN). It bridges the academic world and the UN system. Its goal is to develop sustainable solutions for current and future problems of humankind in all aspects of life. Through a problem-oriented and interdisciplinary approach it aims at applied research and education on a global scale. UNU was founded in 1973 and is an autonomous organ of the UN General Assembly. The University comprises headquarters Tokyo, Japan, and more than a dozen Institutes and Programmes worldwide.www.unu.edu DISASTERS: New risk index helps identify vulnerability (IRIN) A new disaster risk index launched by the UN University Institute for Environment and Human Security in Bonn could help donors and aid organizations better understand why some countries are more at risk of calamity than others, and shape their responses when disaster strikes. The World Risk Index (WRI), explained Jörn Birkmann, scientific head of the WRI project at the UN institute, is unique in defining risk as the interaction between a natural hazard and the vulnerability of a particular community. It helps plan not only short-term responses but also long-term interventions. WRI takes into account social, political, economic and ecological factors to determine the capacity of an affected community to respond. It looks at four main components, which in turn take into account at least 28 variables. 1. Exposure to a natural hazard (sudden as well as slow-onset natural disasters like droughts). 2. Susceptibility, which is understood as the likelihood of society and ecosystems to be damaged should a natural hazard occur. Existing economic, infrastructure, nutrition and housing conditions are taken into account. 3. The capacity to cope, which looks at the state of governance, disaster preparedness and early warning systems, medical services, and social and material security levels. "Governance is a critical issue as it is politically sensitive which is why it is overlooked by many similar indices, but the fact is you need a stable government that has the capacity to deliver to help people become resilient," said Birkmann. He illustrated his point by contrasting the impact of the recent earthquakes in Haiti and Japan. "Owing to higher coping and adaptive capacities, such as building laws, there were significantly fewer victims in Japan." 4. Adaptation strategies - implying the capacities and strategies which help communities address the expected negative consequences of natural hazards and climate change. "Information on coping capacities is relevant for short-term responses, but where long-term programmes and planning is concerned, it is useful for NGOs to know about the area's adaptation capacity," said Peter Mucke, managing director of Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft (Alliance Development Works), a consortium of five German NGOs which worked with the UN University on the study. "So while we come to know which countries need short-term responses like food, at the same time we need know where we have to provide food-for-work programmes or strategies to provide water in the long term." Afghan example Afghanistan, which according to the WRI has the world's poorest adaptive capacity and the second lowest coping capacity, tops the list of countries most vulnerable to disasters. The tool is uncomplicated. "The index gives you all that information at a glance - showing the strength of a particular area's capacity to adapt or cope in percentages, which is useful to communicate the strengths and weakness of a particular area when you are seeking funding from donors," said Birkmann. For instance, Afghanistan's lack of capacity to cope is shown at 93.4 percent; its adaptation capacity 73.55 percent; and vulnerability 76.19 percent. WRI uses the various percentages, and also factors in sea-level rise predictions, to calculate an overall risk figure: The Pacific island of Vanuatu comes out as the country most at risk of a disaster. No risk index can be flawless: In the case of Vanuatu, people will only be at risk of a metre-rise in sea level in 100 years - by which time the country's population may have changed considerably from the 2005 figures used by WRI. WRI is dependent on the availability and quality of the data it uses. It covers 173 out of 192 countries. Somalia is not included. WRI's methodology could be used to focus in on any community of any size in the world. Teacher leaves Brent to be deputy prime minister of Somalia By Tara Brady (London24)
A learning support teacher at a Harlesden school will not be returning to work this term – because he has been made deputy prime minister of Somalia.
Mohamed Ibrahim, 64, of Owen Way, Neasden, worked at Newman Catholic College, in Harlesden Road, for the past two years. But over the summer holidays he was unexpectedly appointed deputy prime minister of his native country as well as minister for foreign affairs. Shocked Richard Kolka, headteacher, said: "I was both amazed and awestruck. What an honour, but also what a responsibility. "I had absolutely no idea he was involved in the political life of his country, let alone at such a high and important level." Mr Ibrahim was employed by the school to help Somali boys improve their English. He is now tasked with leading his country through one of the worst droughts and famines to hit Somalia in 60 years. There are four million people in crisis in the East African country with 750,000 at risk of death in the coming months. The famine has been caused by a combination of factors including severe drought, rising food and fuel prices, chronic poverty and continued conflict. But despite the huge responsibility he is now faced with, Mr Ibrahim wished Newman Catholic College all the best for the future. In his resignation email to Mr Kolka, he wrote: "I was unexpectedly called to my country during the summer holidays, at a time when the country is facing a humanitarian crisis such as drought and famine. "I am sorry not to have resigned from my post and to have accepted another job. I will always have Newman Catholic College in my heart and won't forget the wonderful colleagues." Mr Kolka said that given the circumstances, normal resignation protocols could be waived. He added: "He was always such a humble guy. I got the impression he was well respected by the boys and their Somali parents. But I did not see this coming. I was gobsmacked. "Even in his email he was very humble." Mr Ibrahim has promised to pop into the school when he arrives in London after the UN General Assembly in New York at the end of the month. "War-on-Terror"-seeds sown in Ethiopia grow into dictatorial creepers entangling even journalists Ethiopia charges Swedish journalists with terrorism By Aaron Maasho (Reuters)* Journalists arrested in July * Pair to appear in court in October * Rebels fighting since 1984 Two Swedish journalists who illegally crossed into Ethiopia's Somali Region with rebels in July have been charged with promoting terrorism, an official said on Wednesday. Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye entered the province from neighbouring Somalia with a team of fighters from the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF). They were subsequently wounded in a security operation which killed 15 rebels. Addis Ababa has blacklisted the ONLF as a terrorist group, and recently-adopted anti-terror legislation outlaws "promotion" of the insurgents' activities. "State prosecutors have charged them with assisting and promoting terrorism professionally, engaging and participating in terrorist conducts, and entering the country illegally without a permit," government spokesman Shimeles Kemal told Reuters. Two rebel fighters detained during the operation also face the same charges, he added. The suspects will appear in court on Oct. 17, a justice ministry spokesman said. Envoys from the Swedish embassy in the capital were not immediately available for comment, but had previously confirmed they had access to the journalists. The rebel group blamed the authorities in Somalia's neighbouring semi-autonomous region of Puntland, which enjoys close ties with Addis Ababa, for the journalists' arrest. They say Puntland notified Ethiopia of their movements. The claims are difficult to verify because journalists and aid groups cannot move freely in the area. More commonly known as the Ogaden, the ethnic Somali dominated province is home to a low key insurgency led by the group, which has fought for independence since 1984. Apart from the low key rebellion, the arid region has also been the scene of a handful of kidnappings and banditry incidents during the past four years. Government authorities and the ONLF each blamed the other for a May 13 attack in which one United Nations worker was killed and another injured. Another pair that went missing in the attack has since been found. Ethiopian forces waged an offensive against the rebels in late 2007 after the group attacked a Chinese-run oil facility, killing 74 people. Analysts say the rebels have since weakened but are still able to launch hit-and-run attacks. Ethiopia says the Ogaden basin may contain 4 trillion cubic feet of gas and major oil deposits, but the rebels have warned of attacks against foreign firms who are working in the region. "Terror suspect" held on warship appears in NY court (AP) A Somali citizen arrested on terrorism charges after he was interrogated aboard a U.S. warship made his first public court appearance Thursday. Ahmed Abdulkadir Warsame appeared briefly in U.S. District Court in Manhattan for a conference in which lawyers updated Judge Colleen McMahon on the status of the case.
According to court documents, Warsame helped train members of a Somalia-based terror group called al-Shabab from at least 2007 until April, resulting in the death of at least one person, and supported al-Qaida in Yemen. He was captured by the U.S. military on April 19 and was interrogated aboard a Navy ship for two months before being moved to New York in July. Authorities say during the interrogation he revealed important intelligence about al-Qaida in Yemen and its relationship with al-Shabab militants in Somalia. The two groups have been known to have ties, but the extent of that relationship has remained unclear. Warsame has pleaded not guilty to charges including conspiracy to provide material support to a terrorist organization. He didn't discuss his defense in court, only speaking to acknowledge that the hearing could proceed in English without an interpreter. A prosecutor said the government has given defense lawyers evidence in the case, including computer information and 2,000 pages of documents and reports in various languages. Battles erupt around Gaddafi-held towns in Libya (ZeeNet) Muammar Gaddafi loyalists fired rocket barrages at fighters besieging two Libyan towns still under the deposed leader's control on Friday as fierce fighting erupted a day ahead of a deadline for their surrender. They unleashed volleys of Grad rockets at forces of Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC) north of Bani Walid and east of Gaddafi's home town, Sirte, a news agency witnesses said. The NTC has given Bani Walid, 150 km (95 miles) southeast of Tripoli, and the coastal city of Sirte until Saturday to give up peacefully or face attack -- although previous deadlines have been extended to allow more time for talks. The latest battles were the heaviest in days, but NTC commanders did not say they had begun any all-out assault.Ambulances streamed back and forth to ferry casualties from near Bani Walid, as NTC fighters grabbed crates of rocket-propelled grenades and mortars and raced to the front. In Teassain, 90 km east of Sirte, a news agency witnesses saw heavy rocket exchanges between NTC forces and Gaddafi loyalists.Gaddafi's own location has been a mystery since Tripoli fell to his enemies on August 23 after a six-month civil war, although he insisted in a defiant message broadcast on Thursday that he was still in Libya to lead the fight against what he called the "rats" and "stray dogs" who had taken over the capital. But four of his top officials, including his air force commander and a general in charge of his forces in the south, were among a new group of Libyans who have fled to neighboring Niger, officials in Niger said. General Ali Kana, the southern commander, and Ali Sharif al-Rifi, the air force chief, were among 14 Libyans who arrived in the northern Niger town of Agadez on Thursday after crossing the border in a convoy of four-wheel drive vehicles, they said. A Reuters reporter in Agadez said the four senior men were staying at the luxury Etoile du Tenere hotel, said to be owned by Gaddafi, who stayed there during a Muslim holiday in 2007. Under pressure Niger, under pressure from Western powers and Libya's new rulers to hand over former Gaddafi officials suspected of human rights abuses, said it would respect its commitments to the ICC if Gaddafi or his sons entered the country. "We are signatories of the (ICC's) Rome Statute so they know what they are exposed to if they come," Massaoudou Hassoumi, the head of President Mahamadou Issoufou's cabinet, told Reuters. He said the latest arrivals were "under control" in Agadez, through which the head of Gaddafi's security brigades, Mansour Dhao, passed earlier this week en route to the capital Niamey. "We are taking them in on humanitarian grounds. No one has told us that these are wanted people," said Hassoumi.Joining the hunt for Gaddafi, Interpol issued arrest warrants for him, his son Saif al-Islam and intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senussi, who are all wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for suspected crimes against humanity. "Gaddafi is a fugitive whose country of nationality and the ICC want arrested and held accountable for the serious criminal charges that have been brought against him," said Ronald Noble, secretary general of the Lyons-based police organization. A Tunis-based NTC official, Moussa al-Kouni, told al Arabiya television he believed Gaddafi was somewhere in the southern desert that stretches into Niger and Mauritania. "He is not in a city. He is not in Agadez. It is difficult to catch him. We will need intelligence tips from the residents of the desert," he said, adding that Gaddafi could be disguised as a local shepherd or nomad. Families trickled out of Bani Walid before the fighting intensified, belongings crammed into their cars."I'm taking my family away from war," said Khalid Ahmouda, stopping his car briefly to speak to a news agency. "They are afraid because there will be a big fight today or tomorrow." His veiled wife, Oum Abdurahman, leaned from a window, holding her baby son. "There's no power, no food, no water. Many people want to leave but have no fuel for their cars and Gaddafi forces are preventing people from leaving," she said. "They fire in the air to terrorize people. Today we managed to leave," she said, adding that her brother-in-law was among 11 people killed on May 25 in a crackdown on townsfolk who had staged anti-Gaddafi protests. NTC officials at a checkpoint 30 km from Bani Walid said Gaddafi fighters had been captured. Reuters witnesses saw some men driven away with their hands tied behind them, as well as two bodies, said to be Gaddafi fighters, in a pick-up truck. NTC fighters say that only about 150 well-armed Gaddafi loyalists are holed up in the town, with dozens of pick-up trucks fitted with anti-aircraft guns and heavy machine guns, as well as multiple rocket launchers and artillery. Smoke rose from the front line, now just five km from the town, as NATO planes roared overhead.African migrants The resistance offered by Gaddafi loyalists in Bani Walid, Sirte and the southern desert town of Sabha is obstructing efforts by Libya's new rulers to stabilize the country. Concern is mounting for 1,700 African migrants, mainly from Niger, Somalia, Eritrea and Nigeria, who are stranded in Sabha as the deadline approaches for a negotiated surrender at Bani Walid, the International Organization for Migration said. The IOM was trying to send a convoy from Tripoli with food, water and medical supplies for the migrants at Sabha ahead of their evacuation either by air or by road to Chad or Niger, IOM spokesman Jean-Philippe Chauzy said. "The deadline in Ben Walid comes at the weekend and that is not making anything easier, if there is fighting on that front. There are many unknowns in this equation," he told Reuters. Niger, which only this year returned to civilian rule and is fighting al Qaeda-linked groups in its desert north, fears the Libya conflict might spill over, said cabinet chief Hassoumi. "We have prepared for a worst-case scenario, for example if Bani Walid and Sirte were to fall by force, it could cause a massive stampede of armed groups into Niger," he said. Some NTC officials have said Gaddafi must be captured or killed before Libya can be declared liberated and a timetable for elections and a new constitution can start running. The NTC, struggling to impose its authority on Libya, a sprawling energy-rich desert state of six million people, says it hopes to move its administration to Tripoli from the eastern city of Benghazi next week and to resume pumping oil. Hydrological Warfare, Energy, Arms: Geostrategic Basis Of Libyan War Death for Libyans; billions for the West By Garikai Chengu (TheCitizen-Tanzania) -From oil to water, water-boarding to arms and from gas to reconstruction the war in Libya will rake in billions of dollars for the West. Just how much will trickle down to the people of Libya remains to be seen. People who think that the West's intervention in Libya is just another oil grab are mistaken. Broadly speaking, for Britain military intervention is mainly about arms, Italy its natural gas, France its water and for the US its counter-terrorism and reconstruction contracts. Spreading democracy and saving the people of Benghazi form merely tangential benefits used to justify these ends. Lest we forget, Nato's bombardment began because Mr Gaddafi threatened to do to Benghazi what Mr Bashar al-Assad’s forces are doing to various Syrian cities and Nato itself is poised to do in Sirte. ''History is a set of lies agreed upon'' once remarked Napoleon Bonaparte. If left unchallenged the true motives behind what the French mainstream media have coined ''Sarkozy's War'' may be lost in the fog of war. So what makes Libya so important to the West? Any real estate agent could tell you: location. Given that Libya sits atop the strategic intersection of the Mediterranean, African, and Arab worlds, control of the nation, has always been a remarkably effective way to project power into these three regions and beyond. Ever since time immemorial Western control over Libya has been of great importance. After Libyan independence in 1951, US, British and French payments for military basing rights formed the single-largest element of Libyan GDP until oil exports began to flow in 1961. Nowadays, Mr Sarkozy's interest in Libya lies in a commodity more precious than oil, namely water. It is becoming increasingly accepted that water promises to be to the 21st century what oil was to the 20th century: the precious commodity that determines the wealth of nations. Unlike oil, there are no substitutes, alternatives or stopgaps for water. Nature has decreed that the supply of water is fixed. Meanwhile demand rises inexorably as the world’s population increases and enriches itself. Population growth, climate change, pollution, urbanization and the rapid development of manufacturing industries are relentlessly combining such that demand for fresh water will outstrip supply by 40 per cent by 2040. Libya sits on a resource more valuable than oil, the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer, which is an immensely vast underground sea of fresh water. Colonel Gaddafi had cleverly invested $25 billion in the Great Man-made River Project, a complex 4,000-km long water pipeline buried beneath the desert that could transport two million cubic metres of water a day. Such a monumental water distribution scheme could turn Libya - a nation that is 95 per cent desert - into a food self-sufficient arable oasis. Today France's global mega-water companies like Suez, Ondeo and Saur, control more than 45 per cent of the world's water market and are rushing to privatize water, already a $400 billion global business. For these French companies, Libya will be a bonanza. No wonder Le Monde coined it ''Sarkozy's War'' and had a ''Victoire'' front page splash when Mr Gaddafi's compound was stormed. Late last year, the Central Intelligence Agency suspiciously raised the spectre of ''future 'hydrological warfare' in which rivers, lakes and aquifers become national security assets to be fought over,'' or controlled through proxy armies and client states. Regime change in Libya is the first major instance of hydrological warfare. With the spoils of war from Libya's water market largely reserved for the French, Mr. Cameron is eyeing another market, that of arms. The subject of the West selling arms to regimes suppressing uprisings remains as wilfully overlooked as an American war crime. Even as The Times of London has just reported that Britain enjoyed a 30 per cent spike in arms sales to regimes in the Middle East during the Arab Spring. Arms sold between February and July jumped to $101 million, the Times' report says, noting that these include weapons that could be used to suppress domestic protests. Mr Obama's administration is even more steeped in the controversial arms trade. The US accepts no rival on this front. Over the past decade the US has averaged a staggering $5.8 billion per year in arms sales with the Middle East. The very Libyan military hardware that Nato boastfully claims to have downgraded by 90 per cent will need to be rebuilt. US arms companies will gleefully be on hand to arm their proxy regime to the teeth. Libya will be a bonanza for American arms dealers. American infrastructure contractors will also reap the windfalls of post-war reconstruction. The grim reality is that every bridge, road, rail-link and building that US war-planes bomb will have to be rebuilt and paid for by the Libyan taxpayer. Even grimmer still is the fact that the approximately $1.1billion spent by the US government on bombarding Libya is a drop in the ocean compared to the profit that American contractors stand to make. Many of whom have strong ties to the upper echelons of the military and the Obama administration. In-fact, more than 70 American companies and individuals have won up to $8 billion in contracts for work in post-war Iraq and Afghanistan over the last two years, according to a new study by the Center for Public Integrity. According to the study, nearly 70 per cent of these companies had employees or board members who either served in or had close ties to the executive branch for Republican and Democratic administrations, for members of Congress of both parties, or at the highest levels of the military. Therefore, those in the military tasked with minimising 'collateral damage' to property stand to directly profit from less than pinpoint precision. In short, dropping bombs can be profitable. The recent bombshell revelations of correspondence between the CIA and Libya's security apparatus prove that the US has been outsourcing its torture or ''enhanced interrogation' ' of terror suspects to Libya through the internationally illegal rendition process. These revelations are embarrassing but hardly surprising. Nevertheless, there is little doubt a pliant proxy regime will continue to do America's dirty work.
Last but not least there is oil. Much as the self-righteous West might pretend otherwise, oil is unquestionably a key part of the equation. Libya has the largest oil reserves in Africa and 85 per cent of its exports are to Europe.
Archival footage of Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi surrounded by Mr Gaddafi's female bodyguards, kissing the Libyan strongman's hand at Leonardo Da Vinci airport is indicative of just how important Libya is to Italy.
Libya's oil is especially important to Italy because of its proximity, the ease of its extraction, and the sweetness of its crude. Most refineries in Italy and elsewhere are built to deal with sweet Libyan crude, they cannot easily process the heavier Saudi crude that has recently replaced the Libyan production shortfall.
Libyan natural gas reserves are estimated to be over 52.7 trillion cubic feet and large areas of the country are still to be surveyed. With assured supplies available from Libya, Italy will become less dependent on supplies from Russia, which on the energy front is increasingly flexing its muscles and thumbing its nose at mainland Europe.
Libya has a 1,800km coastline just miles from Italy and porous southern borders with three poor African nations. Therefore, a pliant regime that will stem the flow of asylum seekers and keep the oil and gas flowing is vital for Rome.
From oil to water, water-boarding to arms and from gas to reconstruction the war in Libya will rake in billions of dollars for the West. Just how much will trickle down to the people of Libya remains to be seen.
(*) The author is a research scholar at Harvard University's Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Libya: NATO Warplanes Strike Loyalist Strongholds
NATO strikes Gaddafi's last stronghold (VOR) NATO jets have stricken Libya's Bani Walid at least five times to crash pro- Gaddafi troops that still keep the city under control, Sky News channel reports saying about explosions ripping though the city. Bani Walid together with Sirte, and Sabha are Gaddafi's last strongholds and he or his relatives may be hiding in one of them. Meanwhile Benghazi saw a protest against the new government where demonstrators claimed that the National Transitional Council doesn't meet people's expectations. NATO 'altruism' is all about oil By May Darwiche, Hamilton (TheSpec) Re: Force as an instrument of love; Libya was a case in which noble motives and moral clarity guided the West's military campaign (The Spectator, Opinion, Sept. 6)
I'm writing to express my disbelief at Gwynne Dyer's column.
Is the guy really serious? Does he expect us to believe that NATO's interference in Libya is purely altruistic? Come on, anyone with a speck of an analytical mind knows better than to believe that.
I would like to remind the writer that altruism is a trait that is not selective by nature. Altruistic motives interfere to alleviate distress wherever it is found. And the Middle East is brimming with cases where altruism is direly needed. However, NATO's altruistic motives are evoked only where oil, such as in the case of Iraq and in this case Libya, or a strategic location, such as in the case of Afghanistan, is involved.
I feel badly for the reader of mainstream media for having to see the world through a narrowly constructed projector to maintain a state of ignorance of the real issues of the world.
THE FUKUS SLAP EACH OTHERS SHOULDERS
U.S. NATO Envoy Hails "Extraordinary' French, British Libya Assault US hails 'extraordinary' French, British roles in Libya (AFP) Britain and France played "extraordinary" roles in NATO's air war in Libya but the United States provided the critical assets that ensured its success, the US ambassador to NATO said Thursday. "We're clearly getting near to the end of the operation," said ambassador Ivo Daalder, nearly six months since NATO took over a mission [to bomb] Libya. British and French aircraft flew one-third of some 22,000 sorties while their warplanes hit 40 percent of the 5,000 military targets that NATO destroyed in Libya, Daalder said. "France and the United Kingdom did an extraodinary job and they were equally indispensable to the success of this operation," Daalder told reporters. While around half of NATO members contributed military assets to the operation, only eight conducted air strikes: the United States, France, Britain, Canada, Italy, Denmark, Norway and Belgium. Daalder highlighted the roles played by Belgium, Denmark and Norway, saying that combined they bombed as many targets as France despite their relatively small air forces. Britain and France spearheaded the air war against Kadhafi's forces in Libya, launching the first salvos under a coalition led by the United States on March 19. But with the United States bogged down in Afghanistan, US President Barack Obama handed command of Libya operations to NATO on March 31.Despite the handover, the US military provided three-quarters of the refuelling planes and reconnaissance and intelligence aircraft, while US unmanned drones were deployed to provide...targeting. US warplanes and cruise missiles were also central in taking out Kadhafi's air defences, allowing NATO warplanes to fly over safer skies in Libya.
"Each of these elements were absolutely critical to the success of the operation," Daalder said, noting that US planes flew a quarter of nearly 22,000 sorties, more than any other nation.
The US "contribution was critical to enabling NATO countries and partner countries to participate in, and fulfill their contributions to the mandate."
Daalder said NATO would continue its mission as long as Kadhafi loyalists [continue to resist].
The alliance's second 90-day mandate ends on September 27, but officials have said NATO would renew it if the threat remained.
While forces of Libya's ruling National Transitional Council hunt for Kadhafi, who aired another defiant audio tape on Thursday, Daalder said it was unclear whether his capture would necessarily prompt his followers to raise the white flag.
"It isn't clear that if he were to be taken out that the whole thing would necessarily collapse; we just don't know that...," Daalder said. NATO And U.S. Make Libya Safe For Plutocracy Outside the Box: Libya to be made safe for plutocracy By Harry Goslin (EasternArizonaCourier) -The Libyan story is the same tale that's been told since Western governments and their well-connected benefactors started pushing their weight around the last 500 years. It's just the latest chapter in this tale. It is doubtful Western elites shared the optimism of President Obama when he recently announced that the end of Moammar Gadhafi means control of Libya's destiny will devolve to its "people." Nothing causes so much fear among the elite as the prospect of a nation controlled by its people.The fear becomes more acute when that nation is sitting on top of a valuable resource and located in the most volatile region in the world. Libya might be on the fringe of the Middle East, but people-controlled government there could reignite demand for change in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. Change in Libya has been under the protective power of NATO and the United States.Recently, the U. S. fired more than a dozen unmanned drones in the final push to oust Gadhafi. The cost to the U. S. taxpayer for the Libyan operation now exceeds $1 billion.That's okay. More drones and bombs means a better GDP at the end of the year. NATO and U. S. military assistance was never intended to ensure that the people of Libya succeeded in gaining control of their government. "Rebel" forces would have never gotten the help they did if it wasn't clear from the start that they were willing to swear fealty to Western plutocrats. The Libyan story is the same tale that's been told since Western governments and their well-connected benefactors started pushing their weight around the last 500 years. It's just the latest chapter in this tale. Whenever there's a valuable resource or strategic location to be exploited, the standard plan has been to make sure the guy in power is on your payroll and willing to take orders. It doesn't matter what he does to his people or his neighbors, so long as he's giving you access to whatever is valuable. If he refuses to play the game or goes rogue after being a loyal employee for many years, like Saddam Hussein, Manuel Noriega or Ngo Dinh Diem, you get rid of him. Count on state-controlled media to send past associations down the Memory Hole. It really works the same in this country, except that the transition of real power and control to the elites was gradual and far less violent. The American people reaffirm and support this silent coup every election day. Predictability is what matters. Look at Wall Street. They don't care who sits in the White House or Congress so long as they know that whenever they take a serious hit the taxpayers will be shaken down to make good their losses. They already got the Federal Reserve on their side. The federal government is extra insurance. Heads they win; tails we lose. It’s the same idea projected into every corner of the Earth. Libya will be purged of Gadhafi. Its government will be reformed by Libyan people. They just won't really represent the "people." They can't. The guys in the West who write the checks won't allow it. Who Can't America Kill? By Micah Zenko (CouncilOnForeignRelations) Since September 11, the threshold for who and where the U.S. military and intelligence community can kill has been increasingly lowered, with no end in sight Capitalizing on public interest in the death of Osama Bin Laden and the tenth anniversary of 9/11, a series of books and articles have been published assessing the ability of the U.S. military and intelligence community to find and kill terrorists. Stocked with cool-sounding acronyms, anonymous tough-guy quotes, and impressive body counts, the reports purport to describe top secret operations that are usually only referenced in press briefings or in open congressional testimony, and would lead one to believe that the Pentagon's core organizing principle is lethality. All of these reports feature a similar pattern: a vivid vignette describing a mission to capture or kill a suspected militant or terrorist operative; selectively released operational details, such as the number of night raids conducted or of senior terrorist leaders killed; an emphasis on the effectiveness of the U.S. government's "hunter-killer" architecture and how it has improved markedly since 9/11; and, more often than not, an omission of the key fact that very few such operations actually end in someone being killed. As compared to the monitoring, arresting, interrogating, or detaining of suspects, however, most worrisome is the expanding policy of killing them. Until recently, targeted killings by the United States have received relatively little media or public attention. However, the stark reality of the post-9/11 era is that the threshold for who and where the U.S. military and intelligence community can kill has been increasingly lowered, with no end in sight. In the wake of the African Embassy Bombings in 1998, President Clinton issued three top secret "Memoranda of Understanding," which authorized the CIA to kill Bin Laden and his key lieutenants--fewer than ten people overall--only if they resisted arrest. The CIA interpreted the memoranda as insufficient by limiting the use of lethal force. As George Tenet noted in his memoir, "Almost every authority granted to CIA prior to 9/11 made it clear that just going out and assassinating [Bin Laden] would not have been permissible or acceptable." After 9/11, President George W. Bush made the policy of targeted killing more explicit. Just six days after the attacks, Bush signed a Memorandum of Notification that authorized the CIA to kill, without further presidential approval, some two dozen al-Qaeda leaders who appeared on an inital "high-value target list." Included on this list was Abu Ali al-Harithi, an operational planner in the al-Qaeda cell that attacked the U.S.S. Cole. On November 3, 2002, a Predator drone killed al-Hariti, four Yemenis, and Ahmed Hijazi, a naturalized U.S. citizen and the ringleader of an alleged terrorist sleeper cell in Lackawanna, New York. This was the first targeted killing outside of Iraq and Afghanistan, and the first such killing of a naturalized U.S. citizen. In Pakistan, the U.S. counterterrorism approach after 9/11 focused primarily on law enforcement and intelligence exploitation through arrest and interrogation (including torture) followed by either release or imprisonment. As the State Department's Patterns of Global Terrorism: 2002 report stated: "The Government of Pakistan arrested and transferred to US custody nearly 500 suspected al-Qaida and Taliban terrorists." By 2004, however, the United States largely stopped detaining suspected operatives from Pakistan, and instead began killing them with armed Predator drones. Initially, the intended targets were a limited number of well-known senior al-Qaeda and Taliban officials. Between 2004 and the end of 2007, there were only ten drone strikes in Pakistan. However, in mid-2008, President Bush authorized a vast expansion in the scope and intensity of the use of drones in Pakistan. Since then, there have been an additional 250 strikes. As David Sanger reported, Bush lowered the threshold for an attack to what one anonymous U.S. official described as the "reasonable man" standard: "If it seemed reasonable, you could hit it." Now, nameless militants whose behavior--as determined by "pattern of life" surveillance--bears the "signature characteristics" of providing "operational support" to terrorist organizations can be targeted by drone strikes. In Somalia, the United States backed the Ethiopian invasion and regime change effort that began in December 2006. On January 7, 2007, a U.S. Air Force Special Operations AC-130 gunship flying out of an airport in eastern Ethiopia fired on a convoy of escaping Islamic militants in southern Somalia. Since then, there have been an estimated six more attempted targeted killings there, including by AC-130s, U.S. Navy cruise missiles, special operations raids, and, as of this past June, armed drones. In early 2010, President Obama authorized the killing of a U.S. citizen, Anwar al-Awlaki, a Yemeni cleric born in New Mexico. U.S. intelligence officials claimed that al-Awlaki played an operational role in al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which has plotted to attack the American homeland. A former senior legal official in the Bush administration was unaware of Americans being approved for killing under the former president. In Pakistan, CIA armed drones have killed over 2,000 people overall. One U.S. official recently made the unbelievable claim that less than .0025% of all people killed by drones were civilians. Last week, Washington Post reporters revealed: "The president has given JSOC [Joint Special Operations Command] the rare authority to select individuals for its kill list--and then to kill, rather than capture, them. Critics charge that this individual man-hunting mission amounts to assassination, a practice prohibited by U.S. law. JSOC's list is not usually coordinated with the CIA, which maintains a similar but shorter roster of names." The main objectives of U.S. targeted killings are to disrupt potential attacks on U.S. soil, to protect deployed troops, and to minimize threats to allies or partner states. The U.S. government employees who plan and conduct these operations are careful and highly-deliberate in the decision and application of lethal force. However, significant questions for policymakers remain: In what the Pentagon calls a "period of persistent conflict," when will this policy of targeted killing end? And--most importantly--who can't America kill? General Petraeus: The King Of Spin Takes Over The CIAGeneral Petraeus the king of spin takes over at CIA (RT) United States of America, Washington : General David Petraeus took the oath of office as the next director of the Central Intelligence Angency on September 6, 2011.
ANALYSIS: 9/11 sparked retaliatory wars as the US fought on many fronts beyond Afghanistan and Iraq, writes Tom Clonan. IN THE decade since 9/11 about a million people worldwide have lost their lives in what is now known as the global war on terror. The term "war on terror", was first used by President George Bush on September 16th, 2001, at Camp David as the US began to configure its military response to Osama bin Laden's attacks on New York and the Pentagon. In the weeks and months following 9/11, the Bush administration launched a series of robust military and intelligence interventions worldwide. The first phase started with the invasion of Afghanistan, or Operation Enduring Freedom, which began in October 2001. The war aims were simple – to remove the Taliban leadership in Kabul and deny al-Qaeda physical sanctuary within the country. The US aimed to destroy al-Qaeda and disrupt its capacity to mount international operations from Afghan soil. It also sought to capture or kill bin Laden. In January 2002, the US began the lesser publicised Operation Enduring Freedom – Philippines, to destroy the Islamist terror groups Jemaah Islamiyah and the Abu Sayaf group who had been co-ordinating terrorist operations throughout the Philippines and Indonesia from the island of Besilan. These groups were responsible for attacks such as the 2005 Bali bombings and the beheading of Christian schoolgirls in Indonesia that year. In October 2002, the US military started African military operations from Djibouti, establishing Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa, designed to identify and destroy al-Qaeda affiliated Islamist terror cells within Ethiopia, Somalia, Chad and Niger. This operation was subsequently broadened to include Operation Enduring Freedom – Trans Sahara, widening the scope of its operations to Central Africa and sub-Saharan Africa. This little-known war on terror in Africa has been fought in the main by thousands of US special forces and has been overshadowed by US military operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. In March 2003, the US invaded Iraq in Operation Iraqi Freedom. The war aims of the US in Iraq were less clear than in its other interventions. Faulty and false intelligence reports on so-called weapons of mass destruction were mobilised as a motivation to attack Iraq. The initial invasion phase, involving approximately 200,000 coalition troops, managed to topple Saddam Hussein's regime. Saddam was subsequently captured, tried and hanged in Iraq. But no weapons of mass destruction were discovered and the invasion had the unintended consequence of strengthening Iran's influence in the region. A decade after the Twin Towers attacks, the US continues to wage its war on terror on several continents – from the Horn of Africa and Yemen to Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. The term "war on terror" has entered the language as a catch-all phrase for everything from the inconvenience of security checks at airports to drone attacks in Pakistan. Officially, however, the global war on terror is now over. The Obama administration has rebranded and renamed the Global War on Terror, the Overseas Contingency Operation. Since March 2009, the Pentagon and US Department of Defense have been requested to refrain from using the term, Global War on Terror.In terms of blood and treasure, the wars have been costly for the US and Nato. In Iraq, the US and its allies lost almost 5,000 troops. More than 32,000 were wounded. In Afghanistan, where casualty rates have increased five-fold in five years, the US and its allies have lost almost 3,000 killed in action with a further 13,000 wounded. More than 10,000 US and foreign mercenaries – euphemistically termed security contractors – have also been killed and injured in Iraq and Afghanistan. The strain of a decade of war on America's volunteer army has been heavy. According to the US Army Surgeon General 66,935 US troops suffer from acute combat stress reaction. In addition, the US Congressional Research Service has reported that a staggering 178,876 US veterans have suffered traumatic brain injuries. Almost 2,000 of these veterans are amputees and hundreds have also died of self-inflicted wounds or suicide while on active service in Iraq and Afghanistan. The rate of suicide among US troops has more than doubled since 9/11. For civilians, the cost of war has been especially high. While estimates vary, British medical journal The Lancet suggests that a minimum of 655,000 Iraqi civilians were killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Similar studies suggest that approximately 4,000 Afghan civilians have died during Operation Enduring Freedom. These figures represent those killed by both coalition troops and belligerent forces within Iraq and Afghanistan. The majority of civilian casualties, in both countries, were inflicted by insurgents. The US Congressional Research Service, in its March 2011 report, states that the Overseas Contingency Operation has cost the US taxpayer $1.3 trillion – $130 billion per annum since 9/11. At present, US military operations worldwide cost $386 million per day, or $4,000 dollars per second. According to US Congressional estimates, the final bill will total $1.8 trillion. (*) Tom Clonan is Irish Times Security Analyst; email:. tclonan@irishtimes.com Smart Power Approach to Counterterrorism Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, at John Jay School of Criminal Justice - New York, New York
SECRETARY CLINTON: Thank you. Thank you very much, President Travis. And it is, for me, a great personal pleasure to be in this new facility for John Jay. I had the opportunity to visit John Jay when it wasn't quite as light-filled as this atrium is but knowing that it was always fulfilling its mission. And to come back here today to be with all of you is a singular honor. I'm also very honored to be here with so many friends and colleagues, people who I had the great experience of working with over the last ten years as a senator, now as Secretary of State, people who made a real difference to this city, this state, the country, and indeed the world. And I think about our time together and the work that we did, and it fills me with great gratitude that I had such an opportunity to be just a small part of what so many of you have done in the days and years since 9/11.
I know that this is a time when we are meeting here in New York amid a looking-back as well as a looking-forward, and with the news last night of a specific credible, but unconfirmed, report that al-Qaida again is seeking to harm Americans and, in particular, to target New York and Washington. This should not surprise any of us. It is a continuing reminder of the stakes in our struggle against violent extremism no matter who propagates it, no matter where it comes from, no matter who its targets might be. We are taking this threat seriously. Federal, state, and local authorities are taking all steps to address it.
And of course, making it public, as was done yesterday, is intended to enlist the millions and millions of New Yorkers and Americans to be the eyes and the ears of vigilance. Of course, people should proceed with their lives and do what they would do ordinarily, but to be part of this great network of unity and support against those who would wreak violence and evil on innocent people.
I could not think of a better place to discuss this topic than here at John Jay. For decades you have trained many of New York's leaders in law enforcement and public service, including many who are working right now around the clock to keep our cities safe and secure during this anniversary weekend. And as President Travis has reminded us, ten years ago, John Jay lost more students and alumni, many of them first responders, than any other educational institution in the country. And you became one of the few institutions to offer a master's program in the study of terrorism. Because as John Jay has recognized, the way we understand the meaning of that terrible day, which brought out the best of humanity alongside the worst, will help determine how we meet the continuing challenge of terrorism, which remains an urgent question not only for the United States, but indeed for the world.
This memorial, which is fashioned from steel salvaged from the north tower will serve as a reminder here at John Jay of what this city and our country went through not only on 9/11 with the memories of the twisted girders and the shattered beams looming above the pile, not only the faces and images of firefighters and police officers and construction workers and volunteers who responded immediately and who stayed to dig through the rubble, but it will also remind us of the resilience of our city and our country and the fortitude that we have shown in picking ourselves up, going on with our lives, and dealing with the serious questions we face.
When I first visited Ground Zero on September 12th with Senator Schumer and Mayor Giuliani and Governor Pataki, the air was thick, and many of us wore masks that were meant to protect us who were only there for a matter of hours from what was in the air. But as I watched the firefighters emerging from the – behind the curtain of darkness, the soot that covered them, they weren't wearing masks; they were focused on the job in front of them. When I returned a week later, the rescuers were still there. It was raining that day, but they hadn't stopped. They stayed right there looking for their comrades, looking for the hundreds of others whom they never had known in life but would try to recover in death.
At a family assistance center on Pier 94, I began to meet with and work with families who were cradling photos of their missing loved ones. There are some wounds that never fully heal that we all live with for the rest of our lives, and there are those who have shown how strong they have been in the face of their pain and their loss and have moved forward to lead with new purpose to help build a better future.
There were not very many survivors, as you remember, but I tried to meet with them. I remember visiting one at St. Vincent's who had been so profoundly injured by a part of the airplane falling on her. I remember going to the rehabilitation center up in Westchester where a number of the burn victims had been moved. I was very honored to work with these survivors, one of whom, Lauren Manning, has been very much front and center in my mind because of the book that she has just published, and her husband Greg, who is with us. Although she was badly burned, through fierce willpower and character, she fought her way back and reclaimed her life. And now she and Greg have two wonderful young sons. In her book, Lauren writes that we may all, in fact, we all will be touched by adversity as we go on our life's journey, but we can refuse to be trapped by it.
And that is what emerged so powerfully on September 11th and all the days that followed – compassion, courage, and character as strong as one can imagine and even stronger than the steel that were in the towers. We learned something about what makes this city great and what makes this country exceptional.
New Yorkers worked hard to sustain that spirit. Sally Regenhard went to work to make sure that her son Christian would be remembered and that his death would lead to changes in the way that we build skyscrapers, and the Christian Regenhard Center for Emergency Response Studies is here at John Jay. Jay Winuk and David Paine, in memory of Jay's brother, began My Good Deed. And now hundreds of thousands of Americans and people around the world are trying to channel their remembrance into positive acts on behalf of others. Dr. David Prezant and Dr. Kerry Kelly from the fire department immediately understood what was necessary to track the health of our firefighters and began to compile the most extraordinary record of what happened to those who were there every day and the price that they paid, even though they would not take back a second of what they did.
So we have some examples of those who have helped us make sense of what is almost beyond understanding. And New Yorkers worked hard to sustain that spirit as the days turned into months and then years. The young man who was my press secretary at the time, after going down to Ground Zero with me, going to meet family members, volunteered for the military. Thousands signed up for the fire and police departments, and we did come together to help those who grew sick as a result of their time at Ground Zero. And this week, a new medical study has documented the high rates of cancer among New York firefighters exposed there. So the work is not done. We still have heroes to honor, friends to care for, family to love. And there is also other unfinished business for us as a nation.
On that day, Americans pledged to do everything in our power to prevent another attack and to defeat the terrorists responsible. As a senator from New York, I stood with the 9/11 families who called for a commission to investigate the attacks and recommend reforms. Then we worked together to begin implementing them.
Ten years later, we have made important strides. Our government is better organized. Our defenses are safer than on 9/11. But we still face real threats, as we see today, and there is more work to be done. As the members of the 9/11 Commission recently reported, a number of their major recommendations remain unfulfilled. For example, much-needed radio frequencies have not yet been allotted to first responders to allow them to communicate effectively in a crisis – an issue that I worked on for years in the Senate and is long overdue for completion.
As President Obama has said over the last decade, our government also sometimes went off course, failed to live up to our own values, but we never lost sight of our mission, and we set aside those detours to stay focused, and we made progress. As we move forward, we are determined not to let the specter of terrorism darken the national character that has always been America's greatest asset.
The United States has thrived as an open society, a principled nation, and a global leader. And we cannot and will not live in fear, sacrifice our values, or pull back from the world. Closing our borders, for example, might keep out some who would do us harm, but it would also deprive us entrepreneurs, ideas, and energy, things that help define who we are as a nation, and ensure our global leadership for years to come.
Before 9/11, the commission found that America did not adapt quickly enough to new and different kinds of threats, and it is imperative that we not make that mistake again. It is also imperative that we adapt just as quickly to new kinds of opportunities, that we not be paralyzed or preoccupied by the threats we face, that we not squander our strengths.
So we keep our focus not only on what we are fighting against – on the terrorist networks that attacked us that day and continue to threaten us – but also on what we are fighting for – for our values of tolerance and equality and opportunity, for universal rights and the rule of law, for the opportunity of children everywhere to live up to their God-given potential. That's a fight we can be confident of and a mission we can be proud of. So today, after a decade of learning the lessons of 9/11, let's take stock of where we stand and where we need to go as a nation.
We find ourselves in a moment of historic change and opportunity. The war in Iraq is winding down. The war in Afghanistan has entered a transition phase. Millions of people are pushing their nations to move away from repression that has long fueled resentment and extremism. They are embracing universal human rights and dignity. And this has discredited the extremist argument that only violence can bring about change. Against this backdrop, the death of Usama bin Ladin has put al-Qaida on the path to defeat. And as President Obama has pledged, we will not relent until that job is done.
Earlier this summer, the Administration released its National Strategy for Counterterrorism. It makes very clear we face both a short-term and a long-term challenge. First, to keep up the pressure on al-Qaida and its network. Second, to face down the murderous ideology that fueled bin Ladin's rise and that continues to incite violence around the world. To meet these challenges, our methods must match this unique moment. And we need to apply hard-learned lessons.
We have seen that precise and persistent force can significantly degrade even an enemy as elusive as al-Qaida. So we will continue to go after its leaders and commanders, disrupt their operations and bring them to justice.
But we've also learned that to truly defeat a terror network, we need to attack its finances, recruitment, and safe havens. We need to take on its ideology, counter its propaganda, and diminish its appeal, so that every community recognizes the threat that extremists pose to them and they then deny them protection and support. And we need effective international partners in government and civil society who can extend this effort to all the places where terrorists operate.
To achieve these ends requires smart power, a strategy that integrates all our foreign policy tools – diplomacy and development hand-in-hand with defense – and that advances our values and the rule of law. We are waging a broad, sustained, and relentless campaign that harnesses every element of American power against terrorism. And even as we remain tightly focused on the terrorist network that attacked us 10 years ago, we're also thinking about the next 10 years and beyond, about the next threats, about that long-term ideological challenge that requires us to dig deeply into and rely upon our most cherished values.
I want to speak briefly about these elements of our strategy. First, the operational side: You all know about the bin Ladin raid. It was 10 years in coming. It was a great tribute to the thousands of Americans and others around the world who worked with us. The United States has made great strides over the past decade in capturing or killing terrorists and disrupting cells and conspiracies. In line with the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, we've broken down bureaucratic walls so we can act on threats quickly and effectively. We've also taken steps to protect against new cyber dangers and to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction. That remains the gravest threat facing our country and the world. I will not go through all of our actions on this front.
We have talked about the necessity of bringing the world together around a common cause of preventing the proliferation of nuclear material into the hands of extremists. And President Obama held the first-ever Nuclear Security Summit to try to enlist leaders from across the world for this common goal. As we pursue our campaign on these various fronts, we will always maintain our right to use force against groups such as al-Qaida that have attacked us and still threaten us with imminent violence. In doing so, we will stay true to our values and respect the rule of law, including international law principles guiding the use of force in self-defense, respect for the sovereignty of other states, and the laws of armed conflict.
When we capture al-Qaida members, we detain them humanely and consistent with international standards. And when we do strike, we seek to protect innocent civilians from harm. Terrorists, of course, do exactly the opposite. And just as we will not shy away from using military force as needed, we will also use the full range of law enforcement tools. Those who argued in the past that the fight against terrorism was a military matter and not appropriate for law enforcement posed a false choice. It is and it must be both. Look at the superb work that the New York Police Department has done to keep this city safe over the last 10 years and the work they are doing again today.
This also means putting terrorists on trial in civilian courts, which have time and again shown their effectiveness at convicting terrorists, including many right here in New York, without endangering our local population. And we will use, where appropriate, reformed military commissions, because a lawful system that makes use of both civilian courts and reformed military commissions sends an important message to the world that the rule of law plays an essential role in confronting terrorism, and that it works.
In fact, the AP just did a recent study that there have been 120,000 arrests around the world in the last 10 years of terrorists, and 35,000 convictions. Thanks to our military intelligence and law enforcement efforts over the last decade, al-Qaida's leadership ranks have been devastated. Virtually every major affiliate has lost key operatives, including al-Qaida's number two just this last month.
But we must be clear about the threat that remains. Cities such as London and Lahore, Madrid, and Mumbai have been attacked since 9/11. Recently, Abuja was added to this list. Thousands of innocent people, the majority of whom are Muslims, have been killed. And we know, as we have known for 10 years, that despite our best efforts, there is no such thing as perfect security. So while we have significantly weakened al-Qaida's core leadership in Afghanistan and Pakistan, today we are reminded they can still conduct regional and international attacks and inspire others to do so. And the threat has become more geographically diverse, with much of al-Qaida's activity devolving to its affiliates around the world. I have long described al-Qaida as a syndicate of terror, not a monolith, and this is becoming truer every day.
For example, al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula is reaching far beyond its base in Yemen and seeking to carry out attacks like its attempts to bring down cargo and passenger planes bound for the United States. Other extremist groups in the border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan not only continue to protect al-Qaida's remaining leadership; they are plotting attacks like the failed Times Square bombing. And from Somalia, al-Shabaab is looking to carry out more strikes like last July's suicide bombings that killed 76 people in Uganda during the World Cup.
So even as we mark the progress we have achieved, which has been substantial since 9/11, we cannot afford to ignore these continuing dangers. We need to take a smart and strategic approach that recognizes that violent extremism is bound up with nearly all of today's other complex global problems. It can take root in zones of crisis and poverty, flourish under repression and in the absence of the rule of law, spark hatreds among communities that have lived side by side for generations, and exploit conflict within and between states.
These are all challenges that we face in the 21st century, and they demand global cooperation and, first and foremost, American leadership. So just as counterterrorism cannot be the sole focus of our foreign policy, it does not make sense to view counterterrorism in a vacuum. It must be integrated into our broader diplomatic and development agendas. And we should appreciate that while working to resolve conflicts, reduce poverty, and improve governance, those are valuable ends in themselves, but they also advance the cause of counterterrorism and national security. That is why I have more fully integrated the State Department and USAID into the fight.
We have emphasized innovation. For example, we are now using sophisticated new biometric screening tools to improve border security and the visa process, including electronic fingerprints, facial recognition, and on an experimental basis even iris scans.
We have renewed our alliances and forged new counterterrorism partnerships. Together, we are using all the tools in our arsenal to go after the support structure of al-Qaida, including finances, ideology, recruits, and safe havens.
This is not easy, of course, and we are clear-eyed about how much we can accomplish and how fast. But we will not stop until we do everything possible to prevent recruits and illegal transactions. And we will certainly not solve all the problems of every failed state, nor should we try. But we can make it harder for al-Qaida to fill its ranks and its coffers while ramping up pressure from new and more effective partners.
Let's look at finances, because we know illicit cash pays for terrorist training camps, propaganda, and operations. So cutting off the money is essential. It's a step toward shutting down the network itself. That's why the United States worked with scores of countries to put in place tough new legislation and help many of them disrupt illicit financial networks. Because of the successes that we've had in this area, terrorists are moving out of the formal financial system and increasingly funding their operations through criminal activity, especially kidnapping for ransom. Many of those ransoms have been paid by governments, which only encourages more kidnapping and undermines our counterterrorism efforts. So we are urging our partners around the world to embrace a no-concessions policy.
Even more than the money, what sustains al-Qaida and its affiliates is the steady flow of new recruits. They replace the terrorists we kill or capture, and they plan new attacks. Over the last 10 years, we've learned about how al-Qaida and its affiliates find these new members, about the process of radicalization, and the community dynamics that offer them support and protection. Slowing recruitment is a difficult task, but it begins by undermining extremist appeal. And it continues with highly targeted interventions in recruiting hot spots. That's one reason why the Administration has worked from its first days in office to restore our standing in the world, to bring our policies in line with our principles. This is not about winning a popularity contest. It's a simple fact that achieving our objectives is easier with more friends and fewer enemies.
One of the first things I did after arriving at the State Department was to appoint a special representative to Muslim communities around the world and to step up our engagement in the most crucial media spaces. We put our people – especially Arabic, Urdu, Dari speakers – on key channels like Al Jazeera and others to explain U.S. policies and counter at least some of the widespread misinformation out there. There was this idea that it was – it would be a waste of our time to go on channels and go onto websites to refute and rebut what was being said, but we're in a fight, and I'm not going to let people say things about us that are not true. If they want to say things about us that are true, we'll explain that. But to make up stuff, to be accusing us of things that are totally outlandish and outrageous, was just unacceptable. You're the only way we will get into the conversation where it matters most, and we have to show up. I sometimes get asked by members of Congress: I saw an American diplomat on X, Y, or Z; why? It's because that's where people are. That's where we need to be. I make no apologies for that.
It is with this in mind that we developed and launched the new Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications, which is tightly focused on undermining the terrorist propaganda and dissuading potential recruits. The center is housed at the State Department, but is a true whole-of-government endeavor. It has a mandate from the President. And as part of this effort, a group of tech savvy specialists – fluent in Urdu and Arabic – that we call the digital outreach team are contesting online space, media websites and forums where extremists have long spread propaganda and recruited followers. With timely posts, often of independent news reports, this team is working to expose al-Qaida's and extremists' contradictions and abuses, including its continuing brutal attacks on Muslim civilians. This effort is still small, but it is now growing.
Take, for example, a short video clip that the team put together earlier this year. First, we hear a recording of al-Qaida's new leader, Zawahiri, claiming that peaceful action will never bring about change in the Middle East. Then we see footage of protests and celebrations in Egypt. The team posted this video on popular websites and stirred up a flurry of responses. Like "Zawahiri has no business with Egypt; we will solve our problems ourselves," wrote one commentator on the website Egypt Forum. Another on Facebook said those are people no one listens to anymore. Now, we won't change every mind with these tactics, but we know from extremists in our own country that they are recruited by and influenced by websites. So we're going to do everything we can to be in that fight for their minds and their hearts, and we are ratcheting up the pressure.
Now, this playbook is still being written. But the more we learn about al-Qaida's structure and methods, the more we have homed in on a number of specific recruiting hotspots, not just online but particular neighborhoods, villages, prisons, and schools. We have found that recruits tend to come in clusters, influenced by family and social networks. By focusing on these hotspots in cooperation with our partners, we can begin to disrupt the recruiting chain.
There is no silver bullet, to be sure, but the United States, especially USAID, has long experience with development projects that actually improve people's lives, create new economic opportunities, increase confidence in local communities. We have seen around the world, including in certain areas of Pakistan and Yemen, that this kind of work can begin diminishing the appeal of extremism.
This is a job that calls for a scalpel, not a sledgehammer. So we are pursuing micro-strategies that include credible local leaders and are driven by local needs and informed by local knowledge. For example, in the triangle between Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia where famine and conflict have opened the door to extremists, we are exploring a new partnership with the Kenya Muslim Youth Association. They will organize small learning circles around mainstream religious scholars, who will help provide counseling to young people who have been radicalized. This is a small project, one of many we're doing, but it's taking on a big challenge, and it's a start, and we will keep learning and adapting and keep convincing others to join with us.
Civil society and the private sector have important roles to play. Groups such as Sisters Against Violent Extremism, a group of women in 17 countries around the world who have risked their lives to tell terrorists that they are not welcome in their communities. They have written newspaper articles in Yemen, held workshops for young people in Indonesia, brought Indian and Pakistani women together to show a united front. These women know they will not stop extremism everywhere, but they refuse to sit on the sidelines. Local authorities and civil society often are better positioned than we are to provide services to their people, disrupt plots, and prosecute extremists, and they often bear the brunt of terrorist attacks.
Especially as a threat from al-Qaida becomes more diffuse, it is in the interest of the United States to forge closer ties with the governments and communities on the front lines and to help them build up their counterterrorism capacity. We need to expand our efforts to build an international counterterrorism network that is as nimble and adaptive as our adversaries'. So we have launched a diplomatic offensive to strengthen bilateral and multilateral cooperation on counterterrorism. We have a broad and ambitious agenda, and to carry out this work, I am upgrading our office devoted to counterterrorism to a full-fledged bureau within the State Department.
Last year the State Department trained nearly 7,000 law enforcement and counterterrorism officials from more than 60 countries. Working with the United Nations and other multilateral organizations, we have supported capacity building in Yemen, Pakistan, and other frontline states. Indonesia offers a good example of how this kind of partnership can pay off. When Jakarta decided to form an elite counterterrorism unit, the State Department provided training and equipment. Experts from the FBI and the Department of Justice shared their experience with police and prosecutors.
Indonesia's invigorated law enforcement effort has disrupted plots, tracked down, arrested, and in some cases, killed al-Qaida-affiliated terrorist leaders, including some of those responsible for the Bali bombing. And Indonesian prosecutors and courts have successfully tried and convicted hundreds of terrorists. We need to expand this cooperation worldwide. As the foreign minister of the UAE wrote yesterday, we need a comprehensive global mission to eradicate terrorism and violent extremism.
But until now, there's been no dedicated international venue to regularly convene key counterterrorism policy makers and practitioners from around the world. So later this month, we will take another significant step forward by establishing a new global counterterrorism forum. We're bringing together traditional allies, emerging powers, and Muslim-majority countries around a shared counterterrorism mission in a way that's never been done before. Turkey and the United States will serve as founding co-chairs and we will be joined by nearly 30 other nations. Together, we will work to identify threats and weaknesses, devise solutions, mobilize resources, share expertise and best practices.
This will improve international coordination, but it will also help countries address terrorist threats within their own borders and regions. We will work to eliminate safe havens and identify the most effective messages to counter violence extremism. The forum will assist countries that are transitioning from authoritarian rule to democracy and the rule of law. It will provide support as they write new counterterrorism legislation and train police, prosecutors, and judges to apply the laws in keeping with universal human rights.
So as we deepen our bilateral and multilateral counterterrorism relationships, the United States has clear expectations for our partners. In some cases, by necessity, we are working with nations with whom we have very little in common except for our desire to defeat al-Qaida and terrorism. We make it a point to underscore our concerns about upholding universal rights. We demonstrate through our own example the effectiveness of doing so.
Unfortunately, some countries, even some friends, allow their territory to remain relatively permissive operating environments for terrorist financiers and facilitators. And yet some who undermine our work by fomenting anti-Western sentiment and exporting extremist ideologies to other Muslim communities even as they try to battle terrorists in their own country. Funding madrassas that preach violence and recruit terrorists, distributing textbooks that teach hate, will only accelerate the growth of extremism. This is like planting weeds in your garden and then acting surprised when they choke the flowers. It is counter-productive and ultimately self-defeating, and we will continue to argue against such practices in public and private. We will work with others to extend the success we have had in disrupting the financing of terrorism and will do all I can to try to make sure that more and more countries join this fight.
So all the efforts I have described – the pressure on al-Qaida's leaders, the campaign to deny it funding, recruits, and safe havens, the diplomatic effort to build local capacity and international cooperation – they have put al-Qaida on the defensive. But as important – in fact, even more important, I would argue – has been the blow delivered by the people themselves of the Middle East and North Africa. People across the region are charting a different course than the one that bin Ladin claimed was the only way forward. There is no better rebuke to al-Qaida and its hateful ideology. They are increasingly irrelevant in a region now more concerned with forming political parties than hearing another extremist rant.
It is true that the future is uncertain and it's still possibly going to be exploited by extremists. Security forces are distracted and disorganized. Weapons are missing. We know from experience that democratic transitions can be hijacked by new autocrats or derailed by sectarians. How this moment plays out, and what happens in these transitions, will have profound consequences for our long-term struggle against violent extremism.
But we believe that democracies are better equipped than autocracies to stand up against terrorism for the long term. They offer constructive outlets for political grievances, they create opportunities for upward mobility and prosperity that are clear alternatives to violent extremism, and they tend to have, over time, more effective governing institutions. So it is very much in the interest of the United States to support the development of strong and stable democracies in the region. That is what we are doing, and we are trying to assist both the people and the transitional governments to create economic opportunity and embrace the rule of law.
And it is equally important that the United States continues to live up to our own best values and traditions. The people of these nations are looking at us with fresh eyes, and we need to make sure they see us as a source of opportunity and hope, as a partner, not an adversary.
So as we stand here on the brink of the anniversary of 9/11, we can remember how the world rallied around us in our very difficult time. And we can recall that many were long accustomed to distrusting us, but they reacted on a human level to such an unimaginable crime. We came together as a nation, with a sense of purpose and unity. There were no lines dividing us. We celebrated our diversity – including the many contributions of Muslim Americans – and we showed deep compassion that has always been at the core of the American character.
Today the world is watching us again and seeing whether we will summon up that spirit, that core American spirit, to meet the many challenges that face us here at home and around the world. I am honored to represent our country in every place on the globe. America is exceptional. We are exceptional for our creativity and our openness. We draw people from everywhere. We are exceptional for our unwavering commitment to secure a more just and peaceful world, for our willingness, especially when it matters most, to put the common good ahead of ideology, party, or personal interest.
American leadership is still revered and required. And when old adversaries need an honest broker or fundamental freedoms need a champion, the international community looks to us. When a famine threatens the lives of millions in East Africa or floods sweep across Pakistan, people look to America. They see what we sometimes miss amid all the noise coming out of Washington: America is and remains a beacon of freedom, a guarantor of global security, a true opportunity society, a place to excel, a country of possibility where ideas hatched in a college dorm room can grow into a multibillion dollar business.
The source of our greatness is more durable than many people seem to realize. Yes, our military is by far the strongest and our economy is by far the largest. Our workers are the most productive. Our universities, like this one, are the gold standard. Our values are solid. But we have real challenges, and we have to step up and deal with them. But there should be no doubt that America has the capacity to grow our economy, solve our problems, and renew our global leadership.
Ultimately, this doesn't rest on the shoulders of a president or a secretary of state alone. It rests on the shoulders of the American people. We have to be ready to recapture that spirit of service and solidarity and to find the common ground that unites us as Americans. We have to be ready to recommit to the project of building our country together. I think we're prepared to believe that we have no limits to what we can achieve if we do just that. I believe we're ready.
But I also know that if we want to be the country that we believe in, that we find to be so attractive and aspirational, then we have to accept responsibility and we have to be ready, because more than the daring night raids or the successful prosecutions or the persistent diplomacy or the targeted development, what will keep us safe and keep us strong and keep us great is each of us signing on to be part of that American future.
Thank you all very much. Why a U.S. War With China May Be Inevitable By Stephen Glain (USNEWS) Unwittingly no doubt, the Pentagon is marking the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks by repeating one of the mistakes that provoked The Big One in the first place. In his 1996 fatwa against what he called the "Zionist-Crusader alliance," Osama bin Laden called the occupation of Saudi Arabia by U.S. troops after their eviction of Iraqi forces from Kuwait in 1991 the "latest and the greatest" of American "aggressions" against Islam. This week, without a trace of irony, The New York Times reported that the Pentagon is fine-tuning a plan to keep 3,000 to 4,000 American troops in Iraq after the deadline for their withdrawal at the end of the year. Such a residual force, like the one in Saudi Arabia before it, will likely stoke resentment among Arab Islamists that will inevitably express itself with violence against U.S. citizens or perhaps even on American soil. It would also make a lie of President Obama's pledge to bring all American forces home from that misbegotten war and it only multiplies the number of U.S. troops cooped up in wasteful and intrusive military bases abroad. [See photos of 9/11: Ten Years Later] Of course, the Middle East theater has been all but downgraded as a priority in the Endless War celebrated by American militarists. Coincidental with the rush of 9/11 reflections has been the howling of war hounds for conflict with China. Princeton professor Aaron L. Friedberg, a former close adviser to Vice President Dick Cheney, another lingering specimen of the Bush Pathology, argued in the Timesthis week that American taxpayers must stump up whatever is needed to keep the Chinese dragon in its lair. "Strength deters aggression," argues Freidberg. "This will cost money." According to Friedberg, no economic crisis is so severe that it could distract Americans from the serious business of provoking its largest creditor. Meanwhile, Dan Blumenthal, a commissioner of the reliably alarmist U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, has cowritten a clarion call to preserve American hegemony in Asia and beyond. According to Blumenthal and his colleagues, the primary benefactor of the Pax Americana—China—is now doing everything possible to subvert it. In an essay posted on FP.Com this week, the authors warned a defense-spending floor of 4 percent of gross domestic product should be established to cope with the looming China threat. Otherwise, they argue, America will render itself vulnerable to Chinese prodding in Beijing's own backyard. ("Can we thrive as a nation if we need China's permission to access Asia's trade routes?" the authors ask plaintively, as if Beijing was constructing a toll road through the South China Sea.) Even now, they warn, the Pentagon is forecasting strategic "shortfalls" of badly needed fighter aircraft, naval ships, and submarines. A failure of Congressional nerve to cover those deficits, according to Team Blumenthal, could "lead to Armageddon." As a Tokyo-based correspondent in the mid-1990s, I used to lament the "irony deficiency" of my hosts. Clearly, that ailment has gone viral and jumped the Pacific (along with stagnant economic growth and political dysfunction). Have we forgotten the fraudulent "bomber" and "missile" gaps peddled by the Defense Department during the 1950s to leach taxpayers for ever more powerful, and as it turned out, largely unnecessary, weaponry against the Soviet Union? If the events of the last 60 years has proven anything, it's that threat inflation is as deeply entrenched an American tradition as predatory lending. Yet with the evaporation of one threat inevitably comes the rise of another. Just as radical Islam filled the vacuum created by the imploded Soviet Union as an existential core threat, so too has the degradation of al Qaeda cleared the decks for the coming war with China. [See a collection of political cartoons on Afghanistan.] In its annual report on China's military modernization, the Pentagon this week expressed concerns about what it interprets as Beijing's increasingly offensive posture and lack of transparency. (This from a bureaucracy that, according to its own inspector general, fails every year to account for hundreds of billions of dollars in unsupported expenditures.) No doubt China has its own hegemonic ambitions for a region that has been largely Sino-centric for the last three millennia. Washington meanwhile, appeals for a "peaceful" evolution of Chinese power even as it refuses to concede an inch of its own suzerainty over Asia's seaways and air corridors. The two sides are talking past one another even as they engage in a menacing arms race; absent a diplomatic effort to reconcile their divergent positions, some kind of Sino-U.S. conflict is inevitable. (*) Stephen Glain is a freelance writer with extensive experience as a foreign correspondent in Asia and the Middle East. His latest book,State vs. Defense: The Battle to Define America's Empire, will be published in August by Crown. You can follow him on Twitter @sglain. 695 tusks found in Port Klang (TheStar)Tanzania used to ship illegal ivory to China via Malaysia Barely two weeks after a seizure of elephant tusks worth RM2.3mil in Penang, the Customs Department here found two containers filled with 695 elephant tusks valued at RM3mil. "The shipment was declared as recycle crush plastic' (sic) and was on transit from the Dar es Salaam port to China," Customs assistant director-general Datuk Zainul Abidin Taib said. Zainul said the tusks, hidden among the recycled plastic in the 20-foot containers, weighed about 2,000kg and were seized on Friday. On Aug 19, 664 elephant tusks weighing 1,586kg were seized in Penang. Speaking to reporters yesterday, Zainul said both shipments were from Tanzania, and had stopped for transhipment in Malaysia, with China being its final destination. On the Port Klang seizure, he said they had sent a team to "escort" the two containers, after being tipped off by Customs officers in Penang, to the department's marine enforcement store. A Customs team checked through the two containers and found 92 plastic bags of tusks amidst the recycled plastics. Zainul said there was a possibility that the same syndicate was behind the Penang and Port Klang cases due to the same modus operandi. "Investigations are ongoing. So far, no arrest has been made in both cases," he said. Zainul said they wanted to find out why the smugglers had chosen to transit in Malaysia instead of sailing directly to their final destination. "Logically, it is not cost-efficient to stop for transit," he said. He added that the perpetrators had violated the International Trade in Endangered Species Act, which carries a fine of up to RM100,000 per animal, or a maximum of RM1mil in total. Zainul said those with more information on smuggling activities should contact the Customs Department at 1800-88-8855. "We want to prevent Malaysia from becoming a transit hub for illegal goods," he said. Last week, wildlife monitoring trade network Traffic regional director Dr William Schaedla said Malaysia had emerged as a major hub for illegal ivory trade in the past few years. News reports have stated that at least 20 tonnes of illegal ivory have passed through Malaysian ports since 2003. Just a week ago, 794 African ivory tusks were confiscated by Hong Kong authorities after they arrived by sea from Malaysia. The tusks, estimated to be worth HK$13mil (RM4.97mil), were concealed in a consignment declared as non-ferrous products for factory use. The seizure came after another report that about 1,000 elephant tusks hidden in a container of anchovies, bound for Malaysia late last month, were seized by Tanzanian authorities. ----------------
SOMALI WATERWORLD
THE SITUATION ON SOMALIA's 6th ESTATE:
- YOU ARE PERSISTENTLY BEING LIED TO WITH IMPUNITY
- TRENDS
- SOLUTIONS PENDING
- ECOTERRA STATEMENT and
- THE WISH-LISTS FOR THE NAVIES, THE UN AND BAN KI-MOON
READ ALL AND UNDERSTAND AT: http://beforeitsnews.com/story/135118
and NAVAL NAVEL INSPECTION I
and NAVAL NAVEL INSPECTION II
"Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably the reason why so few engage in it."
Henry Ford (1863 - 1947)
HOSTAGE CASES UNDER OBSERVATION: (© ecoterra/ecop-marine)
Genuine members of families of the abducted seafarers or true vessel owners can call +254-719-603-176 for further details or send an e-mail in any language to office[AT]ecoterra-international.org
FV NN IRAN : Seized March 02, 2009. The Iranian fishing vessel and her 29 crew was seized by Somali pirates. The vessel was missing and wanted. Navy soldiers on French warship FS NIVOSE and her helicopter fired warning shots at a dhow and then snipers from the Estonian Vessel Protection Detachment (VPD) destroyed her skiffs, which were abandoned before the dhow and the hostages were commandeered back to the coast. The vessel and crew are still held hostage.
MV SOCOTRA 1 : Seized December 25. 2009. The vessel carrying a food cargo for a Yemeni businessman and bound for Socotra Archipelago was captured in the Gulf of Aden after it left Alshahir port in the eastern province of Hadramout. 6 crew members of Yemeni nationality were aboard. Latest information said the ship was commandeered onto the high seas between Oman and Pakistan, possibly in another piracy or smuggling mission. 2 of the original crew are reportedly on land in Puntland. VESSEL STILL MISSING and/or working as pirate ship, was confirmed by Yemeni authorities.
The vessel is wanted.
MSV HUD HUD seized March 23, 2010. The motorized, Pakistan-flagged and Pakistan-owned Dhow with 11 Pakistani crew was used to hijack MT ELENI P, a Greek merchant vessel which was released after the payment of a ransom.
Freed seafarers of the Greek merchant ship reported that after the successful boarding of MT ELENI P the pirates left the MSV HUDHUD and all embarked on MT ELENI P. It was therefore assumed that MSV HUD-HUD was set free on 12. May 2010.
It is, however, now reported by the Authorities, that the owners of the vessel still claim to not know the whereabouts of this vessel and its crew. MSV HUD HUD also flies sometimes the flag of the Comoros was established from the records of the Sharjah creek customs office in the UAE.
The vessel is wanted.
MV ICEBERG I : Seized March 29, 2010. The UAE-owned, Panama-flagged Ro-Ro vessel MV ICEBERG 1 (IMO 7429102) with her originally 24 multinational crew members (original crew: 9 Yemenis, 6 Indians, 4 from Ghana, 2 Sudanese, 2 Pakistani and 1 Filipino) was sea-jacked just 10nm outside Aden Port, Gulf of Aden. The 3,960 dwt vessel was in the beginning of the hostage ordeal mostly held off Kulub at the North-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia. Since negotiations by the vessel manager had not achieved any solution, the vessel was taken to the high seas again. Then the USS McFaul intercepted and identified the ship on 19th May 2010, despite the pirates having painted over her name and re-named the ship SEA EXPRESS, while the vessel was on a presumed piracy mission on the high-seas. Since about 50 pirates on the ship made any rescue operation impossible without endangering the 24 crew, the naval ship followed the commandeered vessel's movements for the next 36 hours, until it began to sail back towards the coast of Somalia. Already back then it had transpired that the shipping company Azal Shipping based in Dubai refused to pay any ransom and the ship is apparently not insured, though it carries quiet valuable cargo. For a long time it seemed that the British cargo owner was influencing the not forthcoming negotiations. The sailors soon had no more food, water or medicine from their stores on board. Chief Officer Kumar, Chief Engineer Mohamed and Second Engineer Francis also stated since months that they urgently need Diesel for the electricity generators. The crew requested in July and August again humanitarian intervention as before but could only receive some supplies through intervention by local elders and a humanitarian group, because the owner-manager neglects the crew. In September some negotiations for the release started again, but were not concluded or continued, because the captors consider the offer of the shipowner as unrealistic. According to the Chinese state-media newswire XINHUA, the acting director at the ministry of foreign affairs in Accra (Ghana) Mr. Lawrence Sotah said the ministry, in response to a petition by a relative of one of the hostages, had commenced investigations, but reportedly stated also that their location and reasons for the kidnapping remained unknown. "We do not have any information as to what the pirates are demanding, because the owners of the ship or the pirates themselves have not put out any information which will be helpful for us to know exactly what they want," he said. "Ghana's mission in Saudi Arabia has been contacted to assist, " Sotah said. He said the ministry was working with other international security organization to get to the bottom of what he termed the "alleged" kidnapping.
The vessel is owned by a company called ICEBERG INTERNATIONAL LTD, but registered only with "care of" the ISM-manager AZAL SHIPPING & CARGO (L.L.C) - Shipping Lines Agents - Dubai UAE, whose representative Mr. Yassir Amin - said to be a Yemeni - was stating to all sides that he is handling the case.
Though EU NAVFOR spokesman Cmdr. John Harbour had stated that the vessel was carrying just "general mechanical equipment" and was heading for the United Arab Emirates when it was attacked, it carries a ccording to the owner-manager generators, transformers and empty fuel tanks. It could now be confirmed that besides other cargo it carries generators and transformers for British power rental company Aggreko International Power Projects and the cargo seems to be better insured than the vessel.
One of the sailors from Ghana was able to speak to a journalist back home and stated on 22. September: "They have given us a 48 hour deadline that if we don't come up with anything reasonable they will kill some of us and sink the vessel. I am appealing to the Ghanaian authority that they should do something to save our lives because our treatment here is inhuman". The vessel was then very close to the shore of Garacad. In the beginning of October the Somali pirates allegedly threatened to kill the sailors and to sell the body organs of the 22 hostages, if their ransom demands are not met in the near future. Media reports said the information was received via a text message from one of the hostages, but investigations showed that the message, which read that the pirates will kill them and then remove their eyes and kidneys in order to be sold, is more a sort of a macabre hoax. On 27. October the third officer (name of the Yemeni man known but withheld until next of kin would speak out) died. The crew reported the case, evidence was provided and the owner confirmed that he also knows. Since there is no more light diesel to run the generators for the freezer, the owner reportedly just gave instructions to take the body off the vessel, but has made no arrangements to bring it back to Yemen.
Thereafter it was said that the group holding the ship would use it again to capture other vessels when two skiffs were taken taken on board hinting at plans that the gang intended to commandeer the ship to the high-seas again. But vessel and crew were then still held at Kulub near Garacad at the North-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia, because the vessel was out of fuel. The pirates, however, managed then to refuel from another vessel.
The National Organization for Defending Rights and Freedoms (HOOD) in Yemen as well as ECOTERRA Intl. sent a letter on behalf of the families, following the news that one crew member had committed suicide.
The kidnap victim's families previously published a letter to the President in the state-owned October 14 newspaper in September.
"As it is the state's duty to protect its citizens and because of your public responsibility as the country's president, we demand you free the Yemeni hostages and investigate officials who did not do their duty to rescue them," reads the letter from HOOD to the President.
Also the families of the Indian seafarers on board have several times called upon the President and the Prime Minister of India and addressed the Indian Minister to help and solve the crisis, since the shipowner is not even responding to their requests for information. Though Dubai's Azal Shipping, fronting for the real owners, stated to a maritime website that the crew would not be malnourished, the governments of the seafarers already have statements from the captain and crew-members themselves, which state otherwise and also describe the appalling medical situation.
Again an urgent request to deliver relief-supplies in form of food, water and urgently required medicine as well as fuel for the generators has been made by the captain and crew, but was so far neglected by the ship-owner, who also has not yet facilitated the transfer of the body of the deceased to his Yemeni family. A great number of the still surviving 23 crew are suffering now from serious medical conditions of various kind , ranging from blindness, infections to mental illness, and most suffer from skin rashes, which make now humanitarian intervention and medical assistance compulsory.
It is hoped that the Indian Prime Minister, who was in the UAE, can achieve that the owners of the vessel are now really engaging in a tangible process to free the vessel and not just rely on their so-called consultants.
Latest reports state that the vessel is now only one mile off the beach off Kulub. Dangers that it might get wrecked on the beach are real, because the chief engineer alerted that there is no more fuel on board to manoeuvre the vessel away from the shore and heavy winds and waves push the vessel closer to land.
It would not be the first time that unscrupulous vessel or cargo owners even hope to cash in on the insurance money for a wrecked ship and lost cargo in such a case.
Since 02. February 2005 the classification society Bureau Veritas had withdrawn from this vessel, because a survey of the ship was already overdue back then and no survey has been carried out since. But this did not stop disputed outfits like the Canadian company Africa Oil to use the ICEBERG I as their supply vessel for their adventures with the Australian oil-juggler Range Resources and the Puntland regional administration and to take equipment back to Djibouti when their deal finally went sour recently.
The vessel is also not covered by an ITF Agreement and the crew will have serious difficulties to get their rights even once they come free.
Already the family of the deceased Yemeni seafarer and their lawyer from Aden had no success to achieve any co-operation from the vessel owner or their front-men - a situation experienced by several organizations already before.
Meanwhile the flag-state Panama and the governments of the seafarers have been addressed and are requested to step in. Panama's Shipping Registry, the largest in the world at the end of 2010, has finally exited the "grey list" compiled by signatories of the Paris Memorandum of Understanding (Paris MOU.) The Paris MOU compiles a list of shipping registries that are not in compliance with international standards. It is expected now that the authorities from Panama will take their guarantor position as flag-state concerning the lives of the seamen on MV ICEBERG serious now.
For a long time reports said that the body of the deceased seafarer was decomposing, while vessel and crew are obviously also earmarked to rot unattended in that hell.
Reports from the destitute families say that the vessel-owner hasn't even paid any outstanding salaries and the Indian government has so far only reacted with diplomatic niceties, but no help to the situation in any way.
The vessel has now been moved from Kulub to Ceel Dhanaane south of Garacad, but the chief engineer said he has no more fuel to run the generators and that during one of the manoeuvres the propeller and shaft were damaged.
During the first week of February humanitarian mediation efforts achieved that some crew-members could talk to their families and the families reported that the vessel owner has completely abandoned the crew and his vessel, while also officials from the numerous governments, who are tasked because their nationals are hostages, reportedly also have achieved no step ahead, while the so-called owner of the vessel from AZAL SHIPPING recently stated to the pirates: "Whether you kill the crew or you sink the ship I don't care." - as documented by the crew.
Reports on a certain Somalia website, however, claiming that the chief engineer was missing from the ship and had been taken to an undisclosed location on land, turned out to be simply not true.
The families of the Indian hostages on board went therefore public mid February 2011 and decried the total irresponsibleness of the Indian government. They stated to CNN/IBN that neither the Indian Prime Minister nor the the ministers concerned nor any of the authorities tasked with the duties to care for the hostage seafarers had shown any activity to work on the release of the seafarers on MV ICEBERG I.
The Yemeni family of the deceased sailor had been informed that they had to make a decision what should happen with the corpse, since the pirates were no longer willing to put diesel into the generator for the freezer.
The captain of the ill-fated ship stated that the owners of the vessel had given up ownership and has now addressed the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to assist him with the transfer of ownership and the sale of vessel and cargo in order to recover the wages of the crew and to buy their freedom. He confirmed this also to the families and to CNN/IBN and sent respective written communication to the IMO.
The fathers of six Indian crew members of MV Iceberg I said now they will begin a hunger strike outside the home of India's Prime Minister in Delhi until the hostages are freed.
For the first time in nearly a year, the Seafarers Association of India, now woke up too and they said "they were looking into the matter."
Meanwhile the alleged owner of the vessel at AZAL shipping, who is said to be of Yemeni origin, tried unsuccessfully to derail the brunt of the media and families, who even called now on the authorities of the UAE to arrest him, by claiming that he would negotiate through a Somali exGeneral, who used to work for the Somali government.
The fear that the shipping company wants to wreck the vessel is not over. NexLaw, a Consultancy founded and run by one Ravi Ravindran, who originated from Singapore and moved his business from Turkey into the Dubai Maritime City Free Zone under the name DMCEST and is dealing mainly with shipwrecks was on the case since long. Ravi Ravindran said Yassir Amin of Azal Shipping had mandated him. But with which task, is the question. To wreck it? The NexLaw/DMCEST company claimed already earlier to have been involved also in the case of secretly U.S.-owned but Yemen-based MV SEA PRINCESS II, a seajacked small tanker which was another case where one dead seafarer on board had to be decried and which was then finally freed by the involvement of the cargo-owners and not the consultancy. Since Ravi Ravindran obviously didn't achieve a release, Yassir Amin now resorted to claim that he had involved a Somali exGeneral from Mogadishu.
Recent media reports by one Indian paper about a second death among the crew could not be verified and are believed to be not true. However, the situation of the crew is now really precarious with the shipowner apparently incapable and the pirates demanding.
Dutch warship HNLMS De Ruyter (F 804) had apparently tried in March to receive the body of the deceased Yemeni seafarer from the pirates, but because they approached in a way that the pirates believed it could be trick to launch an attack, their attempt was not successful. On 27. October 2010 Wagdi Akram, the third officer, a Yemeni and father of four, jumped overboard in a fit of dementia. Akram's body was retrieved, stored in a freezer, wrapped in an orange plastic casing with a few bags of ice to keep it cold. Meanwhile it is reported that the gang had to dispose the body into the sea, since there was no more diesel to run the generator and even the crew is cooking now with firewood on board. The electric power having failed when the diesel for the generators ran out, and because the vessel owner did absolutely nothing to help the family to receive the body for burial, the man's remains were just thrown overboard.
More and more signs are pointing to an outcome similar to that of ill-fated MV RAK AFRIKANA, which was wrecked on the coast of Somalia. Only in this case it will be most likely a more serious disaster, since the vessel is reportedly also carrying toxic fluids in containers, which are according to the manifest supposed to be empty. Already IMO, UNEP and other organizations, whose duty is to avert such grave pollution of a coastal ecosystem, have been called upon and the naval forces are urged not to let this vessel go down.
The case has turned into the most ugly tragedy if Somali pirate history, since it has been revealed now that the Chief engineer apparently is so severely handicapped now that his survival is seriously endangered.
MV ICEBERG I, however, still still moored at Ceel Dhanaane at the North-Eastern Somali Indian Ocean coast, while diplomatic avoidance games and the neglect of responsibility from the side of the ownership unfortunately continue.
"We'll nearly die, all people are mental. In some more days people will kill themselves," said the hostage as reported by CNN/IBN, who had received a video tape from the ship and spoke to the crew.
"We have given the go-ahead to all countries in the world to deploy their navy ships there [the waters of Somalia]," Somali Ambassador to Indonesia, Mohamud Olow Barow, had told the media during a press conference in Jakarta on 12. April 2011. This broad statement is, however, disputed by the Somali Transitional Federal Parliament.
Despite several appeals from the families of the sailors, the government has not initiated a firm action yet, leaving the families miffed. The families have now reiterated their demand for government intervention in the matter and help release the sailors abducted.
Jaswinder Singh from Haryana is one the 6 Indians onboard the captured MV Iceberg that has been held captive by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden. Ever since the vessel got hijacked the family has been waiting to hear Jaswinder's voice. His family, like others, have been running from one ministry to other to bring back the sailors home.
Nirmal Kaur said, "I appeal to the Indian government to bring my husband back. It has been over a year now and no actions has been taken from our government."
``Our prime interest is to save the life of every Indian sailor being held hostage...that is the guiding concern for the government,'' said overseas Indian affairs minister Vayalar Ravi.
However and despite all the diplomatic and media hype, nothing is happening concerning the release negotiations, observers close to the case reported on 02. May 2011.
In June 2011 it was reported that the Chief Engineer had finally succumbed to his injuries. The death could, however, at first not be verified until Satnam Singh, a rescued seaman from MV SUEZ, who returned home, independently confirmed on 24. June 2011 that the the MV ICEBERG 1 Chief Engineer MOHAMED ABDALLA ALI KHAM, a Yemeni national, had indeed succumbed to the spinal injuries inflicted on him by the pirates.
Also according to rescued MV Suez sailor NK Sharma, two sailors of MV Iceberg have already been killed by the pirates. He added that those killed are not Indians, which confirms our report.
Describing her daily struggle, sailor Ganesh's mother Pushplata Mohite said, "We can't sleep at night, can't sleep in the day, food doesn't taste good, every morning we wonder why are we alive. When we can't help our own son, what is the point of living?"
Life for Ganesh's family has come to a standstill. His brother Mangesh, who just passed his school said he will only celebrate once he sees Ganesh.
"The government of India should at least do something for MV Iceberg. Pirates have already killed two people on that ship," Madhu Sharma, wife of NK Sharma, told NDTV.
Sources in the Ministry of External Affairs, however, said that the government will not negotiate with pirates as this will only encourage piracy. They added that the Ministry of External Affairs and other ministries are in touch with the ship owners and will play the role of a facilitator. This, however, the Indian official had stated already a year ago with no tangible result leading to the release of the hostages.
The alleged governmental disinterest coupled with a ransom demand of nearly Rs 11.2 crore ($2.5 million) has forced the families of six Indian sailors help captive on board the MV Iceberg-I to do exactly that.
"We can no longer trust the government because it has failed to keep its promises. We request the business fraternity and Bollywood to help us in raising funds for the release of our sons.
They have helped needy families in the past and we hope that they will help us too. We will take to the roads to draw people's attention if need be," said Purshottam Tiwari, father of Dheeraj, who is the chief officer-in-command of MV Iceberg-I.
Mr Tiwari alleged that the government is unwilling to help them because the people involved are not high-profile ones.
"Our children are very low profile as compared to captives in other cases. Had it been a plane hijack, the government would have done anything to ensure the captives' release.
The hijack of IC-814 by a Pakistan-based terror organisation is one such example where the government released hardcore terrorists and doled out money to send negotiators to help with the passengers' release," he said.
The distraught families have pleaded with the who's who of the nation, including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna, Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj, Maharashtra CM Prithviraj Chavan, Congress Spokesperson Manish Tewary, Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrashekhar, Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao, the Director General (Shipping) and even yoga guru Ramdev, but to no avail. The families also staged a dharna near Jantar Mantar along with Sushma Swaraj.
Indian sailors on board the MV Iceberg-I are: Dheeraj Tiwari from Nashik, Swapnil Jadhav from Satara, Ganesh Mohite from Mumbai, Saji Kumar Purshottam from Kerala, Santosh Kumar Yadav from Uttar Pradesh and Jaswinder Singh from Haryana.
Efforts by the families to raise the demanded ransom are still not supported by the Indian government and it is hoped that third-line efforts are not faced by similar setbacks like it was the case in the release of MV SUEZ. Azal Shipping and the UAE, however, have now b een urged to also finally co-operate with the release efforts and to end the ordeal.
Meanwhile the company has received a legal notice to declare which efforts were made to assist and free the crew, but it seems that Azal Shipping fronting for clandestine Iceberg International is not complying and therefore a law suit and the involvement of the UAE authorities is taken into consideration.
The families of the seafarers are devastated and haven't even be able to make phone contact with the hostages during the months of June and July 2011.
End of July 2011 the pirate gang holding crew and ship had obviously found a co-investor and refuelled the vessel, while an earlier reported damage to the propeller obviously has either not been so grave or could be repaired, since the vessel moved furhter south to Ceel Dhanaane.
On 04. September 2011 was reported that the vessel had lost its anchor and drifted to the shore.
FV AL-DHAFIR : Seized on May 06 or 07, 2010. The Yemen coastguard of the Arabian peninsular state reported the case to have occurred off the coast of Yemen. Yemen's Defence Ministry confirmed that the 7 Yemeni nationals on board were abducted to Somalia. Yemen's coastguard said Somali pirates captured the fishing vessel, while it was docked at a Yemeni island in the Red Sea and had taken it to Somalia. The coastguard was continuing its efforts to retrieve the boat, the Defence Ministry said, but meanwhile the dhow was said to be held at the Somali shore close to Kulub. The vessel is missing and wanted.
4 CREW OF FV PRANTALAY 12 (Prantalay stands for "Sea Hunter"; vessel falsely called by some "Frantalay 12") : Seized April 18, 2010 . On 12. July 2011 FV PRANTALAY was still reported to be moored 7nm off Eyl, but thereafter the vessel cut its anchor and drifted to Dinowda. After the longer ordeal (see older updates) the vessel was without fuel and had lost its anchorage at Dhanane (a little known location 8nm South of Eyl where also MV IRENE was held - not Ceel Dhanaane where the vessel was held a longer time ago) in the heavy swell and drifted to the shore near Dinowda, where it is beached now.
The Somali group, which was holding the last vessel of a fleet of three captured fishing vessels from Thailand, FV PRANTALAY 12, released on 01. of August 2011 the surviving 14 Burmese nationals of the originally 25 hostages into the hands of local elders, who handed the these nationals from Myanmar to the authorities of Puntland, the federal regional state of Somalia, who wants to fly them home with UN help.
While 7 of the crew-members had died already in the horrible ordeal, as we reported earlier , four crew of Thai nationality are now held on land near Dinowda, including the captain, the chief engineer, the chief officer and an oiler.
The gang demands still for a ransom to release them.
Marine observers believe the group holding the vessel, seen already earlier as unseaworthy by NATO officials, will try to get the ship afloat, but lack an auxiliary vessel to pull the ship from the beach. Therefore the vessel appears to be now lost for the shipowner, which is why we strike it off our monitoring list. It is in this case not believed by analysts that the stranding of the vessel was organized to cash in on an insurance.
However, the biggest problem is now to free the remaining four crew-members and to secure their safe repatriation, since it appears that they can no longer be freed together with their vessel.
A human rights monitor could get proof of life for the remaining four sailors over a crackling mobile phone line in a re-routed conference call.
The Chief Officer, who gave his name as Ton Wiasing, said in broken English that they are four Thai nationals and he did plead for help to the ship-owner, his government and anyone who can help, because still the gang demands for a ransom to release them. The government of Thailand and the vessel owner have been informed.
The four remaining hostages are now held for ransom on land near Dinowda.
MSV SHUVAL : Seized May 08, 2010. Latest information retrieved about the fate of this Yemen-flagged vessel confirmed a sighting at Garacad, where the vessel was at anchorage on 9. June 2010. Yemeni authorities could not tell the number of crew and were further investigating, but have not been able to provide any tangible information.
FV NN YEMEN : Seized August 26, 2010. The earlier reports provided by maritime observers speaking of the capture of a fishing vesselwere confirmed now to the extend that the type and flag of the vessel have been identified. The Yemeni fishing vessel with at least 10 sailors on board was seized in the territorial waters of Somalia. The name of the vessel and Yemeni registration is not yet known. The Yemeni boat was sailing near the north coast of Somalia when the captors attacked it with small skiffs. They later headed toward the Somali coast. Present location unknown. At the beginning of November 2010 in total at least five Yemeni fishing vessels were held by the Somali sea-gangs, though the Yemen authorities could not provide a detailed account. The case of this vessel has not yet been closed - the vessel is missing and wanted.
MT OLIB G : Seized September 08, 2010. Reports from our local observers were confirmed by EU NAVFOR: Early on the morning of 8 September, the Greek-owned, Malta-flagged Merchant Vessel (M/V) MT OLIB G (IMO 8026608) - a Greek-owned chemical tanker - was pirated in the east part of the protected Gulf of Aden corridor. After having received a report from a merchant vessel that a skiff was approaching MV OLIB G, and after several unsuccessful attempts to make contact with the vessel, the USS PRINCETON warship of Task Force 151 launched its helicopter. The helicopter was able to identify two pirates on board MT OLIB G, the EU report stated. The MT OLIB G was sailing West in the Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor en route from Alexandria to India through the Gulf of Aden - allegedly carrying only ballast. The Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC) is an area in which EU NAVFOR (Task Force 465), NATO (Task Force 508) and Combined Maritime Force (Task Force 151) coordinate the patrol of maritime transits. It is, however, not known yet if the vessel was involved in dumping or why it was just sailing with ballast. The MT OLIB G, deadweight 6,375 tons, has a crew of 18, among which are 15 Georgian and 3 Turkish. Crew and vessel are not covered by ITF Agreement. The vessel has as registered owners FRIO MARITIME SA and as manager FRIO VENTURES SA, , which apparently went into receivership, both of Athens in Greece. The attack group is said to consist of people from the Majerteen (Puntland) and Warsangeli (Sanaag) clans, who had set out from Elayo. After the well timed attack - more or less synchronized with attacks on two other vessels - and the subsequent overpowering of the crew the vessel was then commandeered towards the Indian Ocean coast of Somalia, where it was first held near Eyl and then off Kulub. According to media reports the owner of the vessel initially offered a ransom of $75,000, but later raised it to $150,000. However, the sea pirates want no less than $15 million, a Press TV correspondent reported, which is a totally unrealistic figure.
"Our sons and husbands are innocent, like the Somali people, and we ask the pirates, al-Shabaab and all Somalia to show humanity, in the name of God," Kakhaberidze Nazibrola, wife of the ship's Master, said in an articled written on behalf of the families of the crew.
Information had transpired that the Georgian government made arrangements with the vessel owner to free the ship and crew by end of February 2010, but that hasn't come true yet.
Vessel and crew are at present still held south of Eyl and north of Garacad near a place called Ceel Fusc at the North-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia and different reports about continued conflicts have been received.
Negotiations are on and off.
MSV NASTA AL YEMEN : Reportedly seized on Sept. 14, 2010. Number of crew yet unknown, but presumed 9. Further report awaited from Yemen.
SEVEN INDIAN CREW OF MT ASPHALT VENTURE : Seized September 28, 2010. The Panama-flagged asphalt tanker MT ASPHALT VENTURE (IMO 8875798) was captured on her way from Mombasa - where the vessel left at noon on 27. September, southbound to Durban, at 20h06 UTC = 23h06 local time in position 07 09 S 40 59 E. The vessel was sailing in ballast and a second alarm was received at 00h58 UTC = 03h58 LT. The ship with its 15 all Indian crew was then observed to have turned around and is at present commandeered northwards to Somalia. EU NAVFOR confirmed the case only in the late afternoon of 29. September. Information from the ground says a pirate group from Brawa had captured the vessel and at first it was reported that the vessel was heading towards Harardheere at the Central Somali Indian Ocean coast, while the tanker had first contact at the Somali coast near Hobyo and was then commandeered further north. The vessel is managed by ISM manager OMCI SHIPMANAGEMENT PVT LTD from Mumbai and owned by BITUMEN INVEST AS from Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, who uses INTER GLOBAL SHIPPING LTD from Sharjah, United Arab Emirates as ship-handler. The Government of India and other authorities are informed. Concerning the condition of the crew so far no casualties or injuries are reported, but the vessel seems to have had an engine problem. Negotiations had commenced but have so far not been reaching anywhere. Vessel and crew were held off Kulub at the North-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia, then had been transferred southwards to Ceel Gaan in the Harardheere area at the Central Somali Indian Ocean coast with negotiations more stuck than smooth; and when the crew reportedly had no more food, clean water and diesel a hasty and ill-planned release against a ransom drop was enacted on 15. April 2011. While the vessel got away at least some distance, seven Indian crew were left behind on the beach, who continue to be held as hostages.
Sunil Puri, a New Delhi-based spokesman for Interglobal, a United Arab Emirates-based company that owns the ship, called the pirates' action "unprecedented," and said to the media that it wasn't immediately clear why the pirates acted as they did. "We are still trying to ascertain why that happened. We kept our side of the bargain. We don't know why they weren't released. This is an unprecedented situation. In the past they have always kept their word," Puri told AP.
"It was a joint understanding among us not to release any Indian citizens," a pirate who gave his name as Abdi told Reuters from pirate stronghold Harardhere. "India has not only declared war against us, but also it has risked the lives of many hostages," he said.
However, it is clear that the release operation was not properly planned and executed - analysts maintain. Already before this case and at present 15 other sailors from three different cases are held hostage on land without their ships , awaiting to be freed.
"My name is Bahadur Singh. I'm the chief engineer of Asphalt Venture held by Somali pirates. We are seven people here," said the hostage in a contact CNN-IBN made and which gave a proof of life.
Indian seafarers, organized by the National Union of Seafarers of India (NUSI), the Maritime Union of India as well as shipowners' representatives, marched in Mumbai on 27. April 2011 to demand action against piracy and to show solidarity with the seven crew members of the Asphalt Venture held hostage in Somalia despite the fact that a ransom was paid. After waiting in vain for about a fortnight in Somali waters for the release of seven members still held hostage by Somali pirates, Indian freighter Asphalt Venture with its eight freed crew reached Mombasa in Kenya with only half the crew. "With the engineering officers still in captivity and no engine power, the vessel proceeded slowly under tug tow and under escort of an Indian Naval frigate out of Somali waters," the statement added.
So far it is not clear if India is prepared to arrange for a swap.
The son of the Chief Engineer of the captive ship under Somali pirates Kapil Grewal, has lashed out at the government and demanded immediate intervention from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.Captive sailor Bahadur Singh's son, Kapil Grewal, said "Mr Manmohan Singh is the leader of one of the most powerful nations today, and it is time he acts like one. It is not a question of my father, it is a question of several fathers, brother and sons, so treat them as your own family."Grewal's father Bahadur Singh, the Chief Engineer of Asphalt Venture is still in Somali pirates' captivity along with six other officers in spite of a ransom payment and the worst is, unlike earlier when they were confined to the ship, now they are at an undisclosed location near Haradhere in Somalia."
In the case of MV Iceberg and MV Suez, the government had maintained that all that it can do is put pressure on the ship owner to expedite negotiations, but in the case of Asphalt Venture the ship owner has already paid a ransom and now the ball is firmly in the government's court as to how they will negotiate with the pirates.
meanwhile the owners of Asphalt Venture reportedly have been able to re-establish contact with the negotiators, opening up a fresh channel of dialogue to get back the remaining hostages. This case will show if the demand to release the over 120 Somali brethren from Indian prison in exchange for the seven Indian hostages is serious or if the pirate-gang just used the talk to increase the ransom.
The captain of MV Asphalt Venture, who was released along with seven others, had offered to go back and hold talks for release of the remaining crew, while the newly founded Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG) of the Indian government only decided that it would "wait and watch for the outcome of negotiations between pirates and ship owners."
But now sources from the shipping company stated that the pirates do not want to carry on with any dialogue involving the company and instead want to speak directly with the Government of India. The pirates want to talk about their accomplices who are currently in Indian custody after they were arrested following Indian Navy and Coast Guard operations in the Indian Ocean in the last few months. But New Delhi, it seems, doesn't want to negotiate with the pirates. The decision was taken at an Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG),
However, the Punjab and Haryana High Court now issued notices to the Central government of India on a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking release of Indian Nationals held hostage by Somali pirates. A division bench headed by acting Chief Justice A K Goel issued notices to the Central government on a PIL filed by World Human Rights Protection Council through its chairman Advocate Ranjan Lakhanpal.
The Indian state organs are meanwhile holding at least 126 Somalis from piracy connected cases in detention .
While the Indian government leaves the case to the vessel owner and the vessel owner found it difficult to negotiate anything concerning an exchange - together the resulting sotuation is that hardly any negotiations are forthcoming and of late communications have broken down.
FV NN IRAN : Seized October 01, 2010. The Iranian fishing vessel with her 13 crew was attacked by Somali pirates when sailing together with another Iranian fishing vessel. One of the two Iranian boats escaped, but this one with 13 crew mebers is still missing and is wanted.
MSV ZOULFICAR (aka M.S.V. Madina Zulficar?): Seized on October 19, 2010. This is a motorized sailing dhow, which was captured near the Socotra archipelago. It must not be mixed with the case of earlier pirated Comorian MV ALY ZOULFECAR , which is free. Yemen authorities stated that it would not be a Yemeni vessel, but could possibly be from Iran. Number of crew is not known and further details are awaited. It could, however, be the M.S.V. Madina Zulficar, a known blockade-breaker registered in India, but often flying the flag of the UAE or Somalia. The vessel is missing and wanted.
MSV AL-NASSR : Seized October 28, 2010 off Socotra.The motorized Dhow was captured on October 28, 2010 at 11h56 UTC (14h56 local time) in position 12:08N – 054:25E off Socotra Island, Somalia, according to the IMB Piracy reporting centre. Once a British protectorate, along with the remainder of the Mahra State of Qishn and Socotra and being a strategic important point, the four islands making the Archipelago of Socotra were accorded by the UN in 1967 to Yemen, though they are very close to the mainland of the very tip of north-eastern Somalia. Several of the female lineages of the inhabitants on the island, notably those in mtDNA haplogroup N, are reportedly found nowhere else on earth. The Dhow with presently unknown flag and about 10 crew was heading now towards the Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor of the Gulf of Aden (IRTC) and is likely to be used as pirate-base and/or decoy to capture a larger vessel. Further reports are awaited.
SY CHOIZIL : Seized 26. October 2010. South-African owned SY CHOIZIL was sea-jacked after having left Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. Though news through the seafarer's network had broken much earlier, the case was officially only confirmed on 08. November. T he yacht is owned and was sailed by South African skipper Peter Eldridge from Richards Bay on the northeast coast of KwaZulu Natal , who escaped after the yacht was commandeered to Somalia, while his South African team-mates Bruno Pelizzari (named by one wire service once "Pekezari"), in his 50's, with partner Deborah from Durban were taken off the boat and are still held hostage on land in Somalia. Several questions remain still unanswered, though after the return of the skipper to South-Africa it was officially stated that the yacht had been abducted off Kenya this is still conflicting with other naval reports. Since the own yacht of the abducted couple is still moored at the harbour in Dar es Salaam it could well be that they only joined or actually hired skipper Eldridge first for a short trip north to Kenya.
Both present hostages, Bruno Pelizzari and his girlfriend "Debbie", Deborah Calitz, were on board when the yacht under the command of Peter Endrigde allegedly heading south to Richards Bay from Dar es Salaam in Tanzania on October 21 or 22. Together with the skipper and owner of the yacht, the trio were said at first to have then encountered the pirates on 31. October 2010 in the open sea.
At least one of the attacking pirates appeared to have been from Tanzania and spoke KiSwahili. However, the sloop rigged sailing yacht set up for long distance cruising was then commandeered to Somalia by five Somalis - apparently with the aim to reach Harardheere at the Central Somali coast.
When observers had on 04. November a sighting of a yacht near the Bajuni Island of Koyaama at the Southern coast of Somalia, the search for a missing yacht was on in order to identify the boat and the sailors, but neither the Seychelles nor the network of yachts-people reported any missing yacht, though at that point already even the involvement of a second yacht was not ruled out.
Navies were then trailing the yacht at least since 04. November.
The fleeing yacht was on 06. November forced by the pursuing navies to come close to Baraawa (Brawa). There the yacht had "officially" again been located by the EU NAVFOR French warship FS FLOREAL when it was "discovered to be sailing suspiciously close to shore", so the statement. Despite numerous unsuccessful attempts to contact the yacht, including a flypast by the warship's helicopter, allegedly no answer was received and the French warship launched her boarding team to investigate further, a EU NAVFOR statement revealed and it was also officially stated that they had received a Mayday signal. Why only then the emergency call was sent and not much earlier, has so far not been explained.
After a direct chase by naval forces escalating the situation and the yacht running aground, SY CHOIZIL's skipper Peter Eldridge reportedly jumped over board during a close naval swoop , when also shots were fired and a naval helicopter and a commando team in a speedboat were engaged. Other reports state the owner of the yacht, Peter Eldridge, managed to escape when he refused to leave the boat he built with his own hands 20 years ago. Officials now put it as "the yacht's skipper refused to cooperate" - usually a call for immediate and even deadly response in any hostage situation the world over where armed assailants are involved.
However, Peter Eldridge was later picked up by the French navy and was placed into safety on a Dutch naval vessel. He is confirmed to be a South-African by nationality and his next of kin were informed immediately. After he then arrived at the Kenyan harbour of Mombasa on board the Dutch warship, he was handed over to South African officials and brought to Kenya's capital Nairobi, from where he returned to South-Africa.
Peter Eldridge, who was a member of the Zululand Yacht Club which uses the Richards Bay Harbour as its base , stated later: "The yacht was attacked by pirates - all men aged between 15 and 50 - on October 26," and thereafter : "They demanded money. They took the money that Deborah and Pelizzari were carrying for their families. They demanded more and we told them that we did not have more because we were ordinary people."
Andrew Mwangura, co-ordinator of the East African Seafarers Assistance Programme, said earlier he assumed the yacht had been towed to Mombasa as could have been expected with all the naval presence, but at the same time ECOTERRA Intl. received information from their marine monitors in Somalia saying the yacht was left behind by the naval forces and was at that time drifting. Peter Eldridge's wife, Bernadette, told later the South African Times that she did not know whether her husband Peter would return to Somalia to retrieve what's left of his yacht, SY Choizil, which was run aground during the incident. It is, however, unclear how official statements and the owner himself can speak of "having resisted to the pirates" and insisting that he "was not leaving his yacht alone", when at the same time he must have left it to be rescued by the navy.
"We only can hope that a report speaking of the killing of one man, whereby at present nobody can say if that had been caused by the naval interaction or by the pirates or if it is mixed with another case, will turn out to be not correct at all," a spokesman from ECOTERRA Intl. said on 07. November and added: "and we hope and urge the local elders to ensure that the innocent woman and man will be set free immediately. Since the Al-Shabaab administration, who governs vast areas in Southern Somalia, where the ancient coastal town of Baraawe (Brawa) is located, had earlier openly condemned any act of piracy, it is hoped that a safe and unconditional release of the hostages can be achieved."
The naval command of the European Operation Atalanta stated on 09. November that the whereabouts of the other two crew members was "currently unknown, despite a comprehensive search by an EU NAVFOR helicopter."
Karl Otto of the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Cape Town stated that the Department of International Relations and Co-operation was handling the hostage situation.
International Relations and Co-operation spokesperson Saul Kgomotso Molobi confirmed this on 10. November and said the pirates had not yet made any ransom demand.
While the families of the Durban couple are sick with worry while they wait to hear from the kidnappers, the skipper's wife said: "We have been restricted from giving out more information. I have been told not to say more," but did not want to reveal who had told her to keep quiet.
South African High Commissioner Ndumiso Ntshinga said he is in constant contact with authorities in Somalia who are involved in the search for Bruno Pelizzari and his girlfriend.
Ntshinga indicated that maybe the story that they were taken off Kenya - as the Seychelles had officially claimed - is not correct, by saying: "We have always believed that their reach was mostly around Somalia but if they are going to be going down to the Gulf of Mozambique then it is worrying," said Ntshinga. Naval sources not with EU NAVFOR had earlier stated the attack was at the boundary between Tanzania and Kenya while other naval sources had spoken of the boundary between Tanzania and Mozambique.
After two weeks into the crisis the South African government still stated only: "At this point in time we do not know where they are. We have instructed our consulate to handle the matter," foreign ministry spokesman Malusi Mogale told AFP.
Director of Consular Services at the International Relations Department, Albie Laubscher, said all they can do is wait.
"The situation is that we are expecting the pirates to make contact in some way or another."
Information from Somalia says that the couple was held then for a few days held firth south and then inside Brawa but thereafter was moved to an undisclosed location.
For the Government of South Africa Mr. Albie Laubscher, the director of consular services at the Department of International Relations and Co-operation, said the families of the Durban couple had been briefed that the hostage drama could be a long, drawn-out affair. He said it was government policy not to pay ransom.
The escaped skipper Peter Eldridge maintains that they had been sea-jacked off the Kenyan coast, but failed to explained why they were there instead on their planned route to the South from Dar es Salaam.
A friend of Pelizzari, Jason Merle, said the former elevator technician had decided about four years ago to sell his house and build a yacht. 'He and Debbie invested their lives in that boat, which is now docked in Dar es Salaam, waiting for them to come back to Tanzania,' Merle said. 'They don't have any money. Neither does the family. Ransom is going to be pointless. They're not going to get anything out of that couple. The only thing they have is that yacht and a laptop.'
While abducted yacht SY CHOIZILwas still held at the Somali coast, the couple was at that time said to be held somewhere in the area south of Somalia's embattled capital Mogadishu.
In an effort to send the message to pirates that Deborah is African born and should not be treated like a European or an American, Deborah's brother Dale van der Merwe has denied media reports his sister was of British or Italian descent.
'She does not have any British ties and has never set foot in Britain. We are worried that should her captors read this... it may skew their perception of who Debbie really is and try attach values to her as it was done in the case of the recently released British Chandler couple.'
He said the couple were 'ordinary workers'. They had been sailing for almost two years, stopping at ports on Africa's coast to 'visit and do occasional work'. See: http://yachtpals.com/node/12445
'Anyone who knows or meets them (including their captors) will see that they are gentle and kind people who are not interested in politics but only love sailing, ' he said and added ' Debbie and Bruno will help anyone regardless of their politics, religion, nationality or race, and frequently at their own cost. They are just fellow Africans who work hard and have a passion for sailing. "
The family asked the couple's captors to keep them unharmed and release them back to their families and children, whom they have not seen for so long.
The Dutch Navy detained two groups of Somalis during the last week of November, believing those arrested could be involved in the abduction of Bruno Pelizzari and his girlfriend Deborah Calitz. The people on board of two different skiffs threw their guns overboard when they realised they were about to be attacked by a naval force. But only skipper Peter Eldridge would be able to confirm whether any of the suspects were involved in the attack. Andrew Mwangura of the East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme said fishermen and coastal traders also carried weapons in these dangerous waters and the Dutch Navy could have the wrong men and add to the complications. The Kenyan and the South-African government had refused to accept the men for prosecution, since there was no evidence, and the Dutch Navy was for days in limbo - not knowing what to do with them. Then on 05 November f ive of these Somalis were flown on a military plane to Eindhoven, in the south of the Netherlands to stand trial in Rotterdam for abducting the two South Africans from their yacht. The five were among some 20 suspected pirates rounded up last month in two separate operations. The other 15 were released due to a lack of evidence at an undisclosed location and their case is seen by human rights lawyers as illegal arrest and possible refoulement.
After now more than one month the South African government maintains that no ransom demands have been made, but has not stated if there was no contact or if other demands were brought forward.
According to South African officials there was still no sign of the South African couple captured by pirates off the coast of Somalia at the end of November and Carte Blanche spoke to their Durban-based families, who are concerned that there've been no ransom demands.
International Relations spokesman Clayson Monyela said on 10. December that the kidnappers have yet to make contact with the South African government or the relatives of Bruno Pelizzari and his partner, Deborah Calitz.
It seems that the first contact possibilities were lost by the South-African officials.
The daughter of Mrs. Calitz also appealed to the captors to at least come forward and start talks on a release.
But after two months, on Thursday, 25. December 2010, Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman Clayson Monyela still could only say: "There is nothing new on the South African couple who were hijacked by Somali pirates." Mrs. Calitz' brother Dale van der Merwe said: "The situation stays unchanged, we are still waiting for information.
Skipper Peter Eldridge was in January 2011 interviewed by police and court officials in the Netherlands on the case and reportedly testified that the attack had happened off Tanzania and not off Kenya, as he allegedly had stated to South African officials earlier, who issued this as statement. As South African media reported, Eldridge stated that he also looked at photographs of the accused men and identified some of them as the pirates who had hijacked the Choizil. Why he was not taken through a proper process of identification and raises questions for the defence lawyers.
As of mid January 2011 communication lines seem to have been established with those who hold the couple now and the yacht is used off Barawa to shuttle from and to the illegal dhows, who load charcoal at the coastal town for illegal export. While the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia has no say in that area also the Islamist Al Shabaab administration seems to do nothing against this illegal trade, which also has been termed haram already by several Muslim scholars.
An article by a South-African media house exaggerating the ransom demands while quoting unnamed sources of so-called family friends, was not only rubbished in South-Africa but also from circles close those, who hold the couple in the moment. Andrew Mwangura, officer of the Seafarer's Assistance Program, and frequent reporter on pirate issues, had earlier said that the pirates could be persuaded to take a smaller sum. It seems that unscrupulous brokers and media have no restraint in trying to hype up the story.
However, the brother of Mrs. Calitz said on 31. January 2011 that any ransom demand for his sister was "pointless" unless he could speak to her. Dale van der Merwe said he had asked telephone callers demanding a USD10 million (R70m) ransom for the release of his sister Deborah Calitz for proof that she was alive. "I said to them: 'If you really are who you say who you are, then let me speak to her.' They said no." And van der Merwe appealed again: "We are asking you to please let them go... They are just ordinary Africans like yourselves with similar problems, we are not rich."
International Relations and Cooperation Deputy Director General, Clayson Monyela, said the department was doing its part to ensure the safe return of the two, while also the calls of the three daughters of Deborah Calitz to free their mother have so far not been responded to by the kidnappers.
While the official line of the South African Government to not negotiate or pay ransoms remains unchanged, in mid February 2011 a second brother of Mrs. Calitz - Kevin van der Merwe who lives in Auckland, New Zealand - broke the silence and called for a public funds-drive to enable the family to make an offer for a release to the Somali hostage takers, who hold them now. He said time was running out and they had to do something, adding: ''I am very worried about them mentally and physically.''
A trust account was being set up and he said even the smallest donation would help.
The ransom demanded for the safe release of a Durban couple being held hostage by Somali pirates has been dropped by half, with religious leaders in Mogadishu putting pressure on the pirates to let them go unconditionally, but neither will the family be able to collect the still multimillion dollar ransom nor do they seem to get the right advice and as longer the case takes as more complicated it will get to finalize it.
The obvious media black-out until June 2011 was only interrupted by the spread of false rumours and has not helped the hostages a bit.
On 20. June 2011 Deborah Calitz's daughter, Samantha, then broke the silence and told Eyewitnessnews she believes her mother is alive, after the pirates answered a proof of life question two weeks ago and she said the family is still hopeful she will be released unharmed. Neither Calitz nor her partner Bruno Pelizzari have been allowed to speak to their families but De Jesus said the news they have received is good. "Apparently they are being kept in a compound type of a place where they can exercise and walk around a bit," she said. She said they are still trying to negotiate down the ransom the pirates are demanding. While a Somalia-reporting website and South-African news-outlets engage in pure speculations, the relatives of Pelizzari say they have not received fresh information. They hope the couple will be released as it is impossible for them to raise the demanded ransom.
Meanwhile the yacht, which had been taken by the pirate group to the South but had broken down with engine failure has disappeared again from the island of Koyama. Local elder reported in the beginning of July that they are happy to no longer be threatened by the sea-gangsters.
Van der Merwe said he knew the couple were alive because during each phone call he asked "proof of life questions", which were always answered correctly.
Department of International Relations and Co-operation spokesman Clayson Monyela said the government was working with the Pelizzari and Calitz families but would not pay or compensate any ransom money.
The Dutch navy had caught five Somali men two weeks after the hijack. A Dutch court on 12. August 2011 sentenced two Somali pirates, who were involved in the hijack of the South African yacht to up to seven years in jail. The men were convicted of seizing the boat off Tanzania and abducting the South African couple, who remain missing. The three other Somalis - captured at the same time heavily armed with machine guns and bazookas - were also convicted of piracy, although their involvement in the hijack could not be proven.
The court stated that it could be clarified that the yacht and her originally 3 person crew had been captured off the Tanzania coast - and not off Lamu/Kenya or the Tanzanian-Kenyan border, which contradicting official reports from governments and navies had claimed (see above).
It has been a 10 months hostage ordeal now and the families of South African hostages issued this heart-rending plea: Frantic appeal on kidnap by pirates
Pelizzari's sister, Vera Hecht, who is having to negotiate with the pirates, told Newswatch her heart skipped a beat when they let her speak to her brother on Monday the 22. August 2011. "I could not believe my ears when I answered the call and they had Bruno answering the phone. But he was only allowed to say what they had told him to say obviously and he wasn't allowed to have a little conversation with me, and he sounded like he was talking with a thick lip." Hecht has called on South Africans to support efforts to bring Pelizzari and Calitz home.
FV AL JAZEERA : Seized November 04, 2010. The Yemeni fishing vessel with an unknown number of crew is missing and wanted.
MSV AL BOGARI : Sighted November 7, 2010, as being hijacked, no further data.
FV SAMANALI (Lorance) : Seized Nov 11, 2010 or shortly thereafter. The missing Sri Lankan Fishing Vessel Samanali (Lorance) has the Registration Number 1 DAY-A-0164-NBO. The names of the 4 man crew consisting of the skipper and three crew-fishermen have been provided with the crewlist. They are all of Sri Lankan nationality. The small 34 ft. (10.36 m) wooden fishing boat sports as main colour a light Blue with red and yellow stripes. The deck colour is white.
Vessel and crew sailed on 10. November 2010 at 17h45 from Hendala, at Wattala on Sri Lanka's Western coast.
It was between 10th November and 30th November that two other Sri Lankan FV's were attacked by suspected Somali Piratesand it is feared that this FV may have also been pirated. The vessel is still missing and wanted.
FV NN COMOROS : Seized on November 18, 2010. The Comoros-flagged fishing vessel with a two man crew was confirmed sea-jacked inside the territorial waters of the Comoros. So far the identity of the vessel has not been released and the fate of the crew is not known.
MV ALBEDO : Seized on November 26, 2010. The Malaysia-flagged box-ship MV ALBEDO (IMO 9041162) en route from Jebel Ali in the UAE to Mombasa in Kenya was boarded in the early morning hours and an alarm was raised at 03h00 UTC (06h00 LT) in position 05:38N – 068:27E, which is around 255 nm west of the Maldives group of islands. The master had reported to the Malaysian owners already on that fateful Friday that pirates were on-board and his vessel was hijacked. That information was then forwarded to to the navies. However, EU NAVFOR confirmed only 3 days later on mid-Monday that the vessel was captured. Why EU NAVFOR only reported so late is not known, but maybe because a Danish Navy frigate was sailing Saturday to the rescue of the German freighter MCL Bremen, a multi-purpose 130-metre freighter, which was nearby attacked by pirates. But following standard procedures, the whole crew barricaded themselves in a secret room and the attackers later left that vessel before the warship arrived and MLC BREMEN is reportedly sailing free.
The sea-jacked 1,066-TEU container vessel MV ALBEDO has a crew of 23 sailors. Six hail from Sri Lanka and others from Pakistan, Iran, India and Bangladesh. Registered owner and manager is MAJESTIC ENRICH SHIPPING SDN, which was incorporated on January 25, 2008 as a private limited company under the name of Majestic Enrich Sdn Bhd in Malaysia by Iranian shipping executives and on April 3 changed its name to Majestic Enrich Shipping Sdn Bhd.
According to the owners, most of the containers contain cement, which by now is assumed to have been already rendered unusable due to the extended stay on sea in high humidity. Pirates had claimed that some of the containers had contained weapons.
The vessel was held south of Ceel Gaan at the Central Somali Indian Ocean coast off Harardheere, had been briefly used for a spin at the beginning of April 2011, but returned to the coast. Communications to secure the release of vessel and crew ran reportedly into problems and real negotiations for her release are said to have not yet achieved a consent. The vessel is now held off Ceel Dhanaane because a serious problem had also evolved between the two clan groups who have members among the pirate gang holding the vessel. A mock attack by naval forces with close overflights and closing in of a naval vessel only created havoc but did not contribute to a better solution finding. The negotiations haven't resumed and most of the crew is held on land.
FV NN IRAN (Reg: 4/3386) : Seized December 07, 2010. The Iranian fishing vessel with the Registration Number 4/3386 and her crew of 11 was allegedly seized by Somali pirates together with a second Iranian fishing vessel (4/3810), which had been released and did reach Iran. No. 4/3386 is still missing and wanted.
MSV SALIM AMADI : Seized December 15, 2010. The motorized cargo dhow of most likely Indian origin was seized at 10h00 LT (07h00 UTC) some 70nm from Bosaso on her way from Dubai to this harbour town of the regional state of Puntland in Somalia. Most likely involved also in a business dispute. Number of crew and their fate is not yet known.
FV NN IRAN (Reg: 4/2742) : Seized January 14, 2010. The Iranian fishing vessel with the Registration Number 4/2742 and her 16 crew was seized by Somali pirates together with a second Iranian fishing vessel and since then was missing and wanted.
MSV AL MUJAHEER : Seized January, 16, 2011. The Yemeni motorized dhow with none of her original crew on board, was abducted and is used by alleged Somali pirates as piracy launch. The vessel is missing and wanted.
MV ORNA : Seized December 20, 2010. The UAE-owned, Panama-flagged bulker MV ORNA (IMO 8312162) was in the morning of 20. December 2010 at 08h29LT (11h29 UTC) reported under attack by pirates in position Latitude: 01°46S Longitude: 060°32E.The bulk carrier was under way to India from Durban and is laden with 26,000 to of coal.
NATO reported that the attack was launched from 2 attack skiffs, with pirates firing small arms and rocket propelled grenades at the merchant vessel en route in the Indian Ocean, approximately 400 nautical miles North East of the island-state of the Seychelles. The vessel was stopped and boarded by at least 4 pirates.
The bulk carrier was then pirated, EU NAVFOR confirmed later and that the number o f crew on board was unknown.
The crew is co-operating and no damage is reported, the EU statement reads, which also stated that MV ORNA was not registered with the naval centres of MSCHOA or UKMTO.
The MV ORNA is a Panama flagged, UAE owned bulk cargo vessel with a dead weight of 27,915 tonnes.
The vessels safety management certificate had been withdrawn by Nippon Kaiji Kyokai already on 14. October this year and the crew is also not covered by an ITF agreement, but unlike other UAE-owned vessels it has still at least an insurance with Sveriges Angfartys Assurans Forening (Swedish Club). Ship manager SWEDISH MANAGEMENT CO SA in Dubai fronts for registered owner SIRAGO SHIPMANAGEMENT SA.There are 19 sailors on board and the crew comprises of one Sri Lankan and 18 Syrians.
The owner of Kassab Intershipping-Swedish Management, Capt Abdul Kadar, said that the cargo ship MV Orna was carrying 26,500 tonnes of coal from Durban, South Africa and was enroute to Okha, India, when it was hijacked.
The vessel is at present commandeered towards the Somali coast.
Capt Kassab said that "the ship was expected to reach the Somali waters by [that] Friday and then only we can start negotiations. Past experiences show that the pirates start negotiations only after reaching their home country's shores."
After arriving at the Somali coast the vessel was held together with the crew first off the coast north of Hobyo, before moving further south towards Ceel Gaan from where it then left the coast.
On 26. May 2011 at 09h08 UTC the pirated vessel was reported to be commandeered in position 06 09N and 050 33E with a course of 072 degrees and a speed of 7kts on another piracy mission. It is assumed that the ship is now being abused as a piracy launch with the crew serving as human shield.
On 27. May 2011 at 08h40 UTC MV ORNA was reported in position 07 09N and 053 20E with course 078 degrees and a speed of 7.5 knots.
On 01. June 2011 at 15h34 UTC the commandeered ship was reported in position 11 37N and 061 17E with course 246 degrees and a speed of 4.4 kts.
On 02. June 2011 at 12h24 UTC MV ORNA was reported in position 11 09N amd 059 57E with course 252 degrees and a speed of 5.6 kts.
On 03. June 2011 at 08h14 UTC the vessel was reported in position 10 55N and 57 48E with course 272 degrees and a speed of 6.0 kts, obviously on her way to the Somali coast.
On 05. June 2011 MV ORNA was observed still to be on that track in position 1017N and 05400E with course 258 degrees and speed 5.8 kts.
On 06 June 2011 at 14h54 UTC pirated ship MV ORNA was reported in position 08 59N and 050 52E with course 256 degrees and 6.6 kts.
On 07. June 2011 at 06h18 UTC the vessel was reported in position 07 49N and 050 04E with course 216 and a speed of 6 kts, sailing towards her former anchorage at the Somali North Eastern Indian Ocean coast.
While then being moored at her anchorage north of Harardheere a small fire of possibly electrical cause was reported to have started on 15. June 2011 allegedly at the kitchen and destroyed some staff quarters. The fire did reportedly not cause harm to any person. Conflicting reports spoke of the crew had been taken on land while others said the crew was taken to another nearby vessel, likewise under captivity. Though local residents saw a plume of smoke coming from the vessel, EU NAVFOR said they had no confirmation. The fire was later extinguished, but allegedly also caused damage to the bridge installations and electronics. Rumours that the vessel had sunk are not correct and according to local observers the vessel is still afloat, but a realease of the crew not in sight.
FV SHIUH FU No. 1 : S eized December 25, 2010. At 10h30 UTC on 25. December 2010, the white hulled fishing vessel Shiuh Fu No.1 - CT7 0256 ( ID58582) was reported by NATO as sea-jacked by pirates in position 12°58S - 051°52E around 120nm east of Nosy Ankao, Madagascar. A previously hijacked merchant ship was reported to be in the vicinity during the hijacking of the fishing vessel. It was then at 11h15 UTC observed to act as piracy launch in position 12°58S - 51°51E, while cruising 293° at a speed of 1 knot.
Its original 29 sailor crew consisted of 1 Taiwanese, 14 Vietnamese and 14 Chinese. EU NAVFOR lists only 26 crew. Taiwanese sources s tated that the 26 people on board the Kaohsiung-based FV Hsiuh Fu No. 1, consist of the Taiwanese skipper, 12 Chinese and 13 Vietnamese crewmen.
The Republic of China flagged, 700 to long-liner, owned by SHIUH FU FISHERY CO., LTD. of Kaohsiung in Taiwan is apparently licensed by the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC NO. 900070256) to fish in these waters.
Further reports state that the vessel , which shows on it's side in large letters BI2256 , was commandeered further south and was observed on 26. December 2010 heading 172º with a speed of 10 knots at position 15°23'42.00"S, 52°14'45.60"E. The vessel has a powerful 1,200 HP engine and could, however, run faster, which made it a serious threat concerning possible pirate-attacks against merchant vessels in the area. But the old vessel is also frail and might not withstand prolonged use.
Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said in a press release it had launched an emergency mission and instructed Taiwan's representative office in Cape Town, South Africa to seek assistance from the government of Madagascar.
Back then there has been no communication since Dec. 25 with the Shiuh Fu No. 1, said Samuel Chen (陳士良), director-general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Department of African Affairs.
On 28. December the vessel maintained its strange search- or forestalling-like pattern along Latitude 52 on the North-Eastern side of Madagascar.
But at 03h13 UTC on 29. December 2010, the Pirate Action Group with FV SHIUH FU NO.1 was then reported as going east in position 13 27S - 053 03E with course 102° at speed 9.1 kts.
Vice chief Dao Cong Hai of the Vietnamese Department for Management of Overseas Labor said on January 5 that the 12 Vietnamese workers were enrolled by three manpower exporting firms, named Inmasco, Servico and Van Xuan. All of them are from the central provinces of Nghe An and Ha Tinh. Hai said that the department had instructed the three firms to get in contact with the Taiwanese employer to get information about the Vietnamese sailors and communicate with the victims' families. "This is an unexpected accident. The pirates need money. They need time to evaluate the ship to fix the ransom," Hai said.
Local observers reported on 10. January 2010 that the vessel was moored off Ceel Gaan at the Central Somali Indian Ocean coast of Harardheere, but thereafter took off again.
At 10h50 UTC on 14. Jan 2011, SHIUH FU No.1 acting as mothership, was reported in position 12°21N 055°56E, but came back and was then held off Ceel Caduur north of Hobyo at the Central Somali Indian Ocean coast. No proper contact seems to have been maintained between the owner and the captors and the crew is neglected, sick and tired.
End of June 2011 the fishing vessel left again the coast in a mission for the pirates. RFA Fort Victoria spent four days stalking the Shiuh Fu No.1 and the five small skiffs it uses to carry out hijackings, warning merchantmen in the area to stay clear. At the same time a helicopter from the cruiser USS Gettysburg carried out surveillance flights of the pirated vessel. The RFA eventually broke off its shadowing mission and re-joined the Cougar force, led by flagship HMS Albion, while another Allied warship in the region continued to track the Shiuh Fu No.1's movements.
Hijacked vessel SHIUH FU No 1 was last reported by aerial surveillance in position 1021N 05720E, course 205 at 7 kts, on 02 July 2011. She was then tracking towards the Somali coast but was still capable of conducting mothership operations. The vessel is now held off Garacad at the North-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia.
Renewed efforts to negotiate a release of vessel and crew are under way and it is hoped that a safe agreement can be reached in order to avert a disaster like it happened with FV JIH CHUN TSAI 68.
The gang holding the vessel had announced already since some time that if the vessel owner, who can simply not afford a large ransom, would not come forward, they would take the vessel out to sea again to hunt for better prey, thereby abusing the crew as human shield. The ship was already involved in fivee cases.
The vessel was then refuelled at the beginning of August and on 06. August 2011 it left from Garacad, but only to turn up north of Hobyo. It is assumed that gang were recruiting some fresh men there and went on another piracy mission.
MSV AL SHAMSHIR (sword) (aka MSV SAMSIR) : Seized before December 28, 2010. The most likely Iranian flagged dhow was observed near Ceel Gaan at the Central Somali Indian Ocean coast from mid January to at least the beginning of April 2011. Sometimes the boat was together with a larger vessel at 0435N 04805E, near where abandoned MV RAK AFRIKANA is now grounded.
On 02. May 2011 the Danish Navy with warship HDMS ESBERN SNARE under Dutch orders and NATO command again attacked an earlier pirated vessel with hostages on board.
MSV SHAMSHIR was approached and at first only warning shots were fired by the Danish navy (i.e. first shots were fired by the navy).
Then the pirates used the hostages as human shield and threatened that the hostages would be endangered. The pirates continued to commandeer the vessel towards the coast.
The skiffs and the out-board motors of the skiffs were shot up and disabled by Danish naval sniper fire.
The commandeered dhow proceeded towards the coast and the Danish navy then disengaged.
Allegedly nobody was wounded, naval reports say, but local confirmation could not yet be obtained, because the pirate group and their hostages are in hiding.
MSV AL WA'ALA : Seized on or around 01. January 2011. The Yemeni-flagged dhow was seajacked and immediately used as piracy launch. Around 10. March the vessel had a technical failure in the Arabian Sea and likewise commandeered VLCC IRENE SL went out to help. Some Somali pirates and 3 Yemeni crew were taken aboard the large oil carrier. The 3 Yemeni men were then exchanged with a navy vessel in a deal to return the body of a Somali pirate from VLCC IRENE SL, who had been seriously wounded earlier, was then handed to a naval ship, but died on the operation table. At the moment it is not known whether any pirates or crew stayed on AL WA' ALA and what her current status is.
The vessel is wanted.
MV BLIDA : Seized January 01, 2010. At 15h36 UTC (12h36 LT) of New Year's day, the bulk carrier MV BLIDA (IMO 7705635) was attacked by an armed Pirate Action Group of four men in one skiff, which had been launched from earlier pirated MV HANNIBAL II at position Latitude: 15 28N Longitude: 055 51E. The location is approximately 150 nautical miles South East of the port of Salalah, Oman. EU NAVFOR and NATO confirmed the sea-jacking.
The 20,586 tonne Bulk Carrier is Algerian flagged and owned. The vessel was on her way to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania from Salalah in Oman at the time of the attack.
The bulker has a multinational crew of 27 seafarers (17 Algerian, 6 Ukrainian - incl. captain-, 2 Filipinos, 1 Indonesian and 1 Jordanian).
The official version is that the vessel is carrying a 24,000 tonnes cargo of Clinker.
MV BLIDA was registered for protection with MSC(HOA) but had not reported to UKMTO, EU NAVFOR stated, but did not explain why the vessel was not protected - especially because the vessel used as pirate-launch - MV HANNIBAL II - was reported earlier by NATO to be in the area.
Ship manager of MV BLIDA is SEKUR HOLDINGS INC of Piraeus, Greece and registered owner is INTERNATIONAL BULK CARRIER of Algeria.
The manager could for the first time on 05. January contact the Ukrainian captain who said the 27-member crew is safe, the Ukrainian foreign ministry in Kiev said. The captain of the Blida bulk carrier told the Greek manager that "no crew member had been injured" during the attack last Saturday and that the sailors were in "satisfactory" condition.
Shipping in Algeria is a government monopoly run by the Algerian state, the National Corporation for Maritime Transport and the Algerian National Navigation Company (Société Nationale de Transports Maritimes et Compagnie Nationale Algérienne de Navigation--SNTM-CNAN).
Earlier on 05. January, shipcharterer IBC said it had received no ransom demand from the unidentified pirates who seized the vessel.
"I don't know who will pay, but I repeat that we have not received such a demand," Nasseredine Mansouri, head of International Bulk Carriers (IBC), an Algerian-Saudi company specialising in maritime cargo transport, told AFP.
Justice Minister Tayeb Belaiz said on 06. January his country would not pay a ransom. Belaiz said in a statement to the press that Algeria was the first country to have "called, before the UN general assembly, for the payment of ransom to criminals and kidnappers to become a criminal act". Paying ransom encourages criminals and finances terrorism, he said. "Algeria does not pay ransom," he said adding that the kidnapped crew had been able to contact their families by telephone.
The vessel had arrived in Somalia and was moored off Garacad at the North-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia as marine observers reported, but then left for a piracy spree and was observed on 22. January 2011 in position Latitude: 09 54N Longitude: 052 56E with course 049 degrees and speed 8.6 kts conducting mother-ship operations.
The Somali pirates were urged to let the vessel go in solidarity with the people of Algeria, but still the vessel and crew are held at Ceel Caduur north of Hobyo at the Central Somali Indian Ocean coast, while negotiations have not really been forthcoming.
Algeria has now launched a formal appeal for the release of all hostages held in Africa, including the Algerians captured by Somali pirates early this year, according to Foreign Minister Mourad Medelci.
When asked about the 17 Algerian sailors captured aboard the MV Blida in January, Medelci said that they were in "good condition".
"The Algerian authorities are monitoring the situation and are in regular contact with them through ship owner International Bulk Carriers (IBC), who are negotiating their release," he said.
Toudji Azzedine, from the city of Dellys in Boumerdes province, was among the detained sailors. According to his family, the last communication they had with him was on May 24th. They were told that the crew were in dire conditions.
The water (being fed) is dirty, the food rancid," said Abdelkader Achour, whose brother is among the 27 captives. "We ask the Algerian authorities to intervene to speed up their release," he added.
The appeal launched by Medelci came two days after the families of the hostages assembled in front of the IBC headquarters to denounce the authorities' silence regarding the sailors' fate and to demand President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's intervention to save their lives.
The 80-year-old mother of Ismail Kehli, from Algiers, was among the participants. After hearing about her son's abduction, she suffered from paraplegia and was hospitalised.
"What does the minister want from this appeal?" she wondered. "Does he want to say that Algeria will not pay ransom to save the sailors and they will remain there for many years?"
In June 2011 sailor Moundeer Abdul-Rahmango called on Algerian authorities to do more to pave the way for the seamen's release, saying the 17 have been facing heavy-handed and unyielding practices from Somali pirates. He made his appeal during a phone call with his family back home and said he and others hope they will be rescued before the holy Muslim month of Ramadhan, starting in August.
Relatives of 17 Algerian sailors held by pirates since January then demonstrated at the beginning of Ramadhan to demand their release, saying they feared the men would not survive Somalia's famine and the Ramadhan fast.
"Seventeen Algerian sailors spend the month of Ramadhan in Somalia, the country of famine," said a banner at a sit-in by about 30 relatives of the Algerians in central Algiers. "When we last spoke with them by telephone, on July 9, they told us that they would do the fast whatever the conditions of their detention," the brother of one of the captives, Abdelkader Achour, told AFP.
"With their being fed, when they are, with pasta and dirty water, I fear that they will return them to us in coffins," he said, also referring to temperatures of more than 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit). The government says it is "fully mobilised" and following the matter closely. Justice Minister Tayeb Belaiz said in January that Algeria will not pay ransom, saying it encourages criminals and finances terrorism. This speech apparently angered the pirate gang and the crew is reportedly in bad condition, while negotiations have not yet concluded.
As the holy month of Ramadhan closed with Eid al Fitr celebrations in the Muslim world, the Ukrainian captain of MV BLIDA, held by Somali pirates since over 8 months, reached out to a humanitarian organization for help, because the crew has no more food, no medicine and no clean water.
Most of the crew suffer from high fever due to unknown infections, the captain stated, and he fears that some might have caught a Malaria while no appropriate medical help is provided.
Captain Valentin stated to the regional office of ECOTERRA Intl. that he hadn't heard anything about any ongoing negotiations for their release, which allegedly were near a conclusion as the Greek management company stated to Ukrainian diplomatic offices.
ECOTERRA Intl. had already earlier appealed to the elders of the pirate gang holding this vessel to ensure that ship and crew are released without conditions.
The governments of Algeria and Greece as well as the ombudsman for human rights of the Ukrainian parliament have now been informed about the grave situation of their nationals as well as the other hostages on board of that vessel in order to establish the truth concerning the efforts by the Greek management or the Algerian owner to secure the release of the vessel, because the Algerian owner's hands seem to be bound by the Algerian policy, which stands against any ransom payment, and the captain stated that he had not heard from the Greek management company for a long time (see details below). Allegedly the negotiations broke down one month ago, and family members of the Algerian seafarers among the crew held demonstrations against the inactivity of their government, while their next of kin had to observe a sad Ramadhan in a hostage situation - suffering from a crime, which is outlawed by all teachings of the Holy Quran.
The MV BLIDA and her crew are at present held off the North-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia between Garacad and Ceel Dhanaane, while the pirates still demand a multi-million dollar ransom for the release.
A renewed call for help was received on 06. September 2011 and Captain Valentin as well as the Chief Officer and they described again the desperate situation of the crew and demanded help from the Greek Management company to secure the release of the vessel. A critical situation on 10. September could be averted and the final arrangements for a release appear to be underway.
MSV AL MUSA : Seized January 09, 2011. The Indian merchant dhow was hijacked along with her 14 Indian crew on or about the 9th of January 2011 while under way off Oman.
The dhow was abducted along with her 14 Indian crew on or about the 9th of January 2011 while under way from Dubai to Salalah around 50nm off the coast of Oman. The vessel is carrying assorted food-stuff and was commandeered to Somalia. The vessel is missing and wanted.
CREW OF MV LEOPARD : Seized January 12, 2011. The six men crew (2 Danes and 4 Filipinos) was snatched from 1,780-dwt weapons transporter MV Leopard .
The MV LEOPARD (IMO 8902096) is owned by a small company named "SHIPCRAFT", which is specialized to haul dangerous, military and nuclear cargoes, the Maritime Bulletin says.
The Leopard is known to be carrying what various informed sources have described as a "sensitive" cargo which is believed to include weapons. Although ships operated by Shipcraft, the Leopard's Danish operator, routinely carry nuclear items, this vessel is not believed to have any on board. Some analysts said it could have been possible that the ship had been disabled by its crew before they hid in the citadel and the Somalis may also have felt that the high-profile nature of the cargo could also have posed a heightened risk of naval or military intervention, b ut sources from Somalia believe that the real danger concerning the cargo sensed by the Somalis was the reason to abandon the vessel.
It is unknown if the pirates have touched any of the cargo while the welfare of the crew is also not known. Representatives from ShipCraft have steadfastly refused to comment on the issue when contacted by TradeWinds on several occasions on Wednesday and Thursday. The company deactivated its website on Thursday morning as reports began to filter through that the ship was carrying a potentially dangerous cargo and it remains "under construction". Since unprotected, also MV FAINA - a Ukrainian weapons-carrier with battle tanks for Southern Sudan was intercepted by Somali pirates, but in this case held for 144 days with a major diplomatic row evolving concerning the final destination of the weapons, since they had no permits for Sudan.
"We do not know where the crew is and we are concentrating on locating them and bringing them home to safety," Shipcraft chief executive Claus Bech said in a statement.
He confirmed a report late Thursday that the pirates had taken the six crew members -- two Danes including the captain, and four Filipinos -- and abandoned the 1,780-dwt cargo vessel MV Leopard (built 1989).
He did not reveal if the kidnappers had demanded a ransom. Registered shipowner is LODESTAR SHIPHOLDING LTD of Horsholm, Denmark, who has as ISM manager NORDANE SHIPPING A/S.
A search onboard the boat Thursday by Turkish soldiers, who are part of an international NATO-led force in the Gulf of Aden, turned up "neither pirates nor crew members," Bech said.
The shipping company last had contact with The Leopard crew on Wednesday at 1300 GMT, when the captain sent a distress signal indicating that the cargo ship had been "attacked by pirates who were boarding from two speed boats," the statement said.
After receiving the alert, NATO sent the Turkish warship Gaziantep to the scene, a spokesman for the alliance's anti-piracy mission, Jacqui Sheriff, told the Politiken daily's website.
Shipcraft, which has not provided information on what the cargo ship had been carrying, is known as a specialist in shipping explosives and ammunition, the paper reported, adding that The Leopard was transporting weapons.
All the company's ships have traveled in the area with armed guards since pirates attempted to capture another of its cargo ships, The Puma, in mid-2009.
However, Politiken.dk reported that The Leopard had let off its armed guards at the Oman port of Salalah before sailing into a zone considered "safe" where it was attacked.
The crew of MV LEOPARD is not covered by an ITF agreement.
According to TradeWinds and in what represents a major departure from Somali pirates' usual modus operandi, the six seafarers have been snatched and moved to a seized Taiwanese fishing vessel which is operating as a mother-ship.
British sailing couple Paul and Rachel Chandler who had their yacht Lynn Rival hijacked in October 2009 before they were moved to the seized 1,550-teu container vessel Kota Wajar. From there they were taken ashore and held hostage for over a year and only freed last November.
The only other such "off-takes", apart from the Chandlers, were the kidnapping of Juergen Kantner and his partner from their sailing yacht S/Y ROCKALL on 23. June 2008, the kidnapping of Deborah Calitz and Bruno Pelizzari from S/Y CHOIZIL on 26. October 2010 and the snatching of Sri Lankan fishermen Mr. Lal Fernando and Mr. Sugath Fernando from FV LAKMALI on November 30, 2010. However, recent information reaching our marine monitors in Somalia also say that three women (one Tanzania and two Comorian) had been transferred from the vessel on which they where kidnapped - the MV ALY ZOULFECAR. They were, however, later transferred back..
The most likely explanation, why the pirates left the arms-ship, is that the crew managed to flee into the strong-room and disabled the engines. The time to then get to the crew left little time to get the engines working again before a warship would have arrived. The pirates therefore decided to leave the huge amount of ammunition, rockets and missiles, which the vessel was transporting as deliveries from three European countries to states in Asia, because this loot would not be of immediate benefit to the Somali warlords and most likely would have triggered a serious naval response to block the vessel and its goods from reaching the Somali coast. The mastermind then must have decided to order the gang to just kidnapp the crew and disappear on the waiting fishing vessel.
Allegedly the Somalis holding the 6 men crew have already offered a deal to exchange them.
The Danish shipping company said it was searching for the six crew members, while reports from Hobyo say that 4 Somalis including one dead had been delivered by a naval Helicopter to Hobyo. The Filipinos of the Leopard crew are apparently still held there. The two Danes were then held separately from the Filipinos on a vessel off Hobyo together with the two Spaniards. While the Spaniards were freed against a massive ransom from MT SAVINA CAYLYN , the 2 Danes were then held on another vessel north of Hobyo before they were put on land where they are held now together with the other 4 Pinoy crew members.
According to the Danish newspaper Ekstrabladet, the company SHIPCRAFT had allegedly more or less given up on negotiations since around March. For that reason, the Danish Ship Officer's Union had turned the owners of the company in to the police for negligence and they were even criticized by their own organization, Rederiforeningen af 2010, an organization for smaller shipowners in Denmark. It also should be noted that besides the two Danes also four Filipino seamen are held hostage in this case, for whom not many have spoken out - especially not from their government. Meanwhile the hostages are said to be held south-west of Hobyo.
Reports from the ground in Somalia at the beginning of July 2011 indicated that an agreement seemed to have been reached and a release could have been near, but on 08. July 2011 it was then reported that a disagreement between the members of the pirate group, which hail from one sub-clan, has let to a serious setback. The two Danes are now held separately at different locations on land south of Hobyo and according to local marine observers, who spoke with elders close to the scene, appear to have become desperate and sick.
This was confirmed when two videos showing mainly the pleading of the two Danish hostages and one Filipino was was pushed onto the internet. Seriously traumatized the hostages pleaded obviously under duress with the shipowner to get them out and urged their government to oversee that the shipowner gets them free fast, because their health is seriously deteriorating and they fear to be killed.
The captain stated (had to state?) that the shipowner contacted them However, Claus Bech of Shipcraft stated that the company "has since January - and with the advice from renowned security advisers and in close consultation with all relevant parties, amongst others the appropriate authorities - been negotiating for the fastest possible release".
He acknowledged the grave situation by stating: "Our colleagues are under unbelievable pressure, mentally as well as physically," and ensured "that we are doing our very utmost to get our valued colleagues back home from the cruel captivity as soon as possible."
The Captain confirmed that they carried military equipment from Germany, Montenegro, Sweden France and England for Mumbai, India, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and finally Busan in South Korea.
The Chief Mate stated that especially he himself, but also others in the crew, have serious health problems and are afraid to die. He confirmed that the crew was first held hostage on another vessel but then, since about three month, were kept hidden away in the bush of the coastal hinterland.
MV HOANG SON SUN : Seized January 20, 2010. The vessel MV HOANG SON HUN (IMO 8323862) was seized by pirates, who came onboard shooting at 12h42 UTC in position Latitude: 15°11N Longitude: 059°38, which is approximately 520 nautical miles South East of the port of Muscat, Oman. The 22,835-tonne Bulk carrier is Mongolian flagged and Vietnamese owned, has a crew of 24 Vietnamese nationals and is carrying 21,000 tons of iron ore.
MV HOANG SON SUN was not registered with MSC(HOA) and had not reported to UKMTO.
Owner and manager of the Vietnamese vessel is HOANG SON CO LTD from Thanh Hoa City, Vietnam, who insured it with West of England Shipowners. Unfortunately for the seafarers it has no ITF agreement.
Nguyen Bien Cuong, head of the Hoang Son Co's maritime security department, said the last time his firm had heard from the Vietnamese crew of the cargo ship was Tuesday. However, according to the ship-owner (Hoang Son Company in Thanh Hoa province), the captured ship captain Dinh Tat Thang somehow managed to clandestinely send an email saying that all sailors are in safe condition and the merchantship has been moved to a Somalia port.
Apart from that, Hoang Son Company has not received any other information, Vietnamese media reported.
Bui Viet Tung, son of chief mechanic Bui Thai Hung, one of hostages, is angry that the company has not made any contact with the pirates.
"If Hoang Son Company is not committed to the case, our family will go to Hai Phong northern city to seek more information on my father's situation".
On the same day, Hoang Son – deputy director of Hoang Son – told Tuoi Tre the company is working with a UK-based firm specialized in negotiating all things related to hostage and pirates to rescue the victims.
"The ransom is estimated to hit US$5 million," Hoang Son added and stated that the vessel itself is insured against hijackers by the Vietnam Bank of Agriculture and Rural Development, but that the staff and goods on the ship have no insurance. "If pirates ask for a huge ransom, there's no way the company can afford it," Son said and added: "We need the support of the state and our insurer."
Based on this analysts believe that the case will take at least three month, because the British companies are known to take their time, because they are paid for it.
Crew and vessel were first held off Hobyo and then the vessel was moored off Ceel Dhanaane at the North-Eastern Somali Indian Ocean coast. Negotiations seem to have become difficult, which is why the captors decided mid July to take the vessel out to sea again. NATO, however, does at present not assess the vessel to be used as piracy launch.
On 28. July 2011 a report sent by a human rights monitor on routine proof of life mission, spoke of now only 22 crew members. It is so far not knows if the 2 missing seamen died or if they could abscond.
MT SAVINA CAYLYN: Seized February 08, 2011. At 04h27 UTC (07h27 local time) Somali pirates sea-jacked the huge Italian crude oil tanker MT SAVINA CAYLYN (IMO 9489285) with 22 crew members in the Indian Ocean en route from the Bashayer oil terminal in Sudan to the port of Pasir Gudang in Malaysia. The attack took place in position Latitude: 12°10N Longitude: 066°00E on the Indian Ocean, which is 673 nm straight east from Socotra Island at the tip of the Horn of Africa and around 360 nm west of the Indian Lakshadweep Islands. The ship is carrying a load of crude oil for ARCADIA, a commodities trading company.
Though Italian newspapers first published the tanker had escaped, European Union Naval Force Somalia spokesman Paddy O'Kennedy confirmed later the Italian flagged and owned MT SAVINA CAYLYN was hijacked. "The vessel was boarded after a sustained attack by one skiff with five suspected pirates firing small arms and four rocket propelled grenades," O'Kennedy said and added: "There is presently no communication with the vessel and no information regarding the condition of the crew of 22 - 5 Italians and 17 Indians."
The 104,255 dwt MT SAVINA CAYLYN had registered with the Maritime Security Centre - Horn of Africa (MSCHOA) and was reporting to the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).
The Aframax of Chinese make was built in 2008 at the Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding shipyard and is insured through Standard P&I Club per Charles Taylor & Co., but so far no information concerning an ITF agreement for the crew was found.
Registered owner is DOLPHIN TANKER SRL for managers FRATELLI D'AMATO SPA , Naples NA, Italy. Fratelli D'Amato Spa is fully owned by Luigi D'Amato, who is also the sole administrator.
Dolphin Tanker s.r.l. is a 50% joint venture between Scerni Group and Fratelli D'Amato S.p.a., and a joint venture between Luigi D'Amato, president of Fratelli D'Amato International Group, and Paolo Scerni, president of Scerni Group - which presently owns 6 tankers. The joint venture might come to an end by mutual consent and banks which granted credit lines for their ships in the past years – i.e., Milan-based Centrobanca, Genoa-based Banca Carige, and Deutsche Bank AG – have been informed of the ongoing restructuring, necessary in order to preserve the earnings from a pool of ships which made last year a 4 million Euros profit.
So far Il Cavaliere del Lavoro (Knight of Labor) Luigi D'Amato serves as the President.
Italian Cmdr. Cosimo Nicastro of the Italian coast guard said the coast guard was alerted by a satellite alarm system about the attack. All Italian ships that register with the coast guard's operations center in Rome have such an alarm system. "T here was an exchange of fire between the pirates and crew," Nicastro said and it was observed that the 266 metre long ship slowed down almost to a standstill before it then sped up again and resumed its course , leading the coast guard to think the pirates had climbed on board and are now in command.
Where the pirates instructed to wait for this vessel, like it was the case in other sea-jackings - for instance the weapons-transporting Ro-Ro FAINA or now admittedly the MV SAMHO JEWELRY case?
Initial reports then said no-one was hurt in the attack and Commander Pio Schiano, from the Fratelli D'Amato shipping company in Naples, told a local television channel that he had been in communication with the tanker, stating that the crew were well but no ransom demands had been made.
Italy's foreign ministry released a statement following the attack to announce that a task force had been set up to monitor the situation along with the ministry of defence.
The vessel was then commandeered towards Somalia, while the Italian Navy frigate ZEFFORO , which was some 500 miles away, was heading to the area too.
The 266-m long and 46-m wide vessel was expected in Hobyo at the Central Somali Indian Ocean Coast, when satellite imagery showed it early morning on 10. February still about 330 km off the Somalia coast.
Vessel and crew have meanwhile arrived on 12. February off Hobyo at the Central Somali Indian Ocean coast and negotiations are reportedly under way. However the vessel and crew had then been transferred further south to the Harardheere district coast, where the vessel was held off Ceel Gaan and now has been moved to Hobyo.
Two Spaniards, hijacked earlier from VEGA 5 were at the end of their ordeal held hostage on this vessel until their release against a multi-million dollar ransom. The vessel is still moored off Hobyo, while the crew is awaiting progress and conclusion in the negotiations for their own release.
FV AL-FARDOUS (aka FV ALFARDOUS) : Seized February, 12. 2011. The vessel was captured near the disputed islands of Socotra, which are located on the continental shelf of Somalia at the very tip of the Horn of Africa, but were handed to Yemen located across the Gulf of Aden. The crew is consists of eight sailors.
Fishing rights in this fish-rich zone off the coast of Somalia have been leading to disputes since many decades.
European Union's naval mission Atalanta of EU NAVFOR confirmed the capture now in a welcomed move to not only focus their attention on abducted large merchant ships. The vessel is missing and wanted.
MV DOVER : Seized February 28, 2011. At 06h06 UTC (09h06 LT) on 28 February, the Bulk Cargo Carrier MV DOVER (IMO 7433634 ) was pirated in position Latitude: 18°48N Longitude: 058°52E - approximately 260 nautical miles North East of Salalah in the Northern Arabian Sea of the Indian Ocean. NATO and EU NAVFOR confirmed the seajacking.
The Panama-flagged, Greek owned bulker was en route from Port Quasim (Pakistan) to Saleef (Yemen), allegedly fully laden with wheat.
The 38,097 dwt MV DOVER has a crew of 23 ( 1 Russian, 3 Romanian and 19 Filipinos).
The MV DOVER was registered with MSC(HOA), and was reporting to UKMTO.
WORLDWIDE SHIPMANAGEMENT SA serves as shipmanager for registered owner DOVER NAVIGATION SA, sporting WORLDWIDE SHIPMANAGEMENT SA as ISM manager - all of Piraeus, Greece. The vessel has a valid safety certification, issued by the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping, but crew is not covered by an ITF agreement.
The Pirate action group with their launch vessel was still in the attack area, while the bulker was then commandeered towards Somalia and expected at the North-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia.
Initially there was no communication with the vessel.The condition of the crew is said to be unharmed and so far all right, given the circumstances. However, it is was reported that also the Danish yacht-sailing hostages are held on this vessel, which makes negotiations for the MV DOVER in the moment obsolete.
The vessel is now held, partly drifting (or intentionally changing positions), off the area between Bandar Beyla and Bargaal. At present MV DOVER is close to Hurdiyo, where also the sailing yacht SY ING is held.
Allegedly the specific group of hostage takers, which kidnapped the Danes, has paid out the original captors of MV DOVER and is now in charge of both cases. However, the guards assigned to the two different targets sometimes even have shoot-outs among themselves. The vessel is from time to time moved between Hurdiyo and Ras Binna.
Negotiations are ongoing and ransom demands have been lowered. Allegedly another attempt to free the vessel by delivering a ransom was made on 25. June 2011 according to a website reporting on Somalia, but unfortunately also that second report was false and also the Danish hostages are still on board of that vessel. A new round of negotiations to free MV DOVER and her crew, however, appears to have some prospect.
On 22. July the vessel went off from the shore of Bargaal to evade an attack by the Puntland forces on MV JUBBA XX and did reach up to near Hawo and Alula, but returned five days later without the SY ING, which was earlier in tow when the vessel left. At the end of July the MV DOVER is still moored off Bargaal with the Danish hostages on board. An agreement on the release of the merchant ship appears to have been reached, but concerning the Danish hostages on board such has not yet been achieved and therefore it was said to have hindered the release of MV Dover. However, with the release of the seven Danish hostages on 06. September 2011 it became clear that the ordeal of the crew of MV DOVER hasn't ended yet.
MSV ABU AL FADL (aka JELBUT 33): Seized on or around March 10, 2011. The dhow was captured by presumed Somali pirates and abused in a failed attack on a merchant vessel. The boat was then trailed by the Australian navy, which in the course also encountered another pirated dhow MSV AL SHAHAR 75, which they subsequently liberated and let sail free. The present status of MSV ABU AL FADL is not clear and further reports are awaited. The navies call this dhow JELBUT 33 and had two attack skiffs on board . Last known position at 08h43 UTC on 08. May 2011 in position 12 06N and 059 28E with course 035 at 8 knots.
The vessel and crew ar now held at anchor off Ceel Dhanaane.
MSV QUBAIS : Seized March 17, 2011. The vessel was captured in position 080555N and 05111E (off Eyl). The vessel is missing and wanted.
MSV AL KHALIL (aka AL-KHALEEL) : Seized March 24, 2011. The Iran-flagged motorized dhow was captured 500Nm E of Minicoy islands. The pirates were operating from sea-jacked Iranian FV MORTEZA, which itself had been pirated earlier on 28. January 2011 off Mauritius and was then sunk on 27. March 2011 by the Indian Navy. Further details concerning the number of crew etc. are awaited. The vessel was commandeered towards Somalia, is missing and wanted.
FV NN IRAN : REGISTRATION NO.: 4/4039 : Seized April 06, 2011. The Iranian owned and Iran-flagged fishing vessel with a crew of 13 is assumed to have been pirated. Vessel and crew are missing and wanted.
MV ROSALIA D'AMATO : Seized April 21, 2011. At 02h05 UTC on 21. April 2011 the Italy-flagged Bulk Carrier MV ROSALIA D'AMATO (IMO 9225201) was boarded in position 13 17N and 05906E, which is approximately 350 nm South East of Salalah, Oman, in the Arabian Sea of the Indian Ocean, by presumed Somali pirates who had attacked the vessel - according to NATO, who confirmed the sea-jacking, with one dhow and two skiffs.
However, it was found that the pirated fishing vessel FV JIH CHUN TSAI 68 (certainly not a dhow) was involved.
The 74,500 tonne Italian flagged and owned vessel was en route from Paranagua (Brazil) to Bandar Imam Khomeini (Iran) when it was attacked at first only by a single skiff, but then seconded by the others.
According to EU NAVFOR,coalition warships had communications with the vessel and were told: 'pirates onboard stay away'.
EU Naval Force Somalia spokesman Paddy O'Kennedy confirmed that the MV Rosalia D'Amato was registered with the Maritime Security Centre-Horn of Africa MSC (HOA) and was reporting to UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).
The MV ROSALIA D'AMATO has a crew of 21 (6 Italians, 15 Filipinos). The 6 Italians, two are from Sicily, including the commander Orazio Lanza, two from Ischia, one from Vico Equense, and the first officer is native from Meta di Sorrento but lives in Belgium.
Owner and manager of the vessel is listed as PERSEVERANZA SHIPPING SRL of Naples, Italy. The bulk carrier is part-owned by Sen. Angelo D'Amato, owner of "Perseverance Navigation" and the nephew of the owner of "Brothers D'Amato. The company Perseveranza SpA is a Company owned by Giuseppe D'Amato and he is now the leader of a family of shipowners that since four generations is known in the world shipping community. Giuseppe D'Amato is unanimously recognized as one of the most prestigious entrepreneurs in the Italian shipowners community. He has been Vice President of Confitarma, the Italian Shipowners Association, for six years; he has been Board Member of the Banca di Credito Popolare di Torre del Greco, the biggest independent regional bank in Southern Italy; he has been Board Member of UMS Generali Marine SpA, the biggest Italian Insurance Company specialised in Maritime Hull and Machinery Risks, that today is a branch of Assicurazioni Generali for transportation; he has just been awarded an honorary degree in Shipping Business at the "Università Parthenope" in Naples.
Operated in a tough commercial sector, all the owned vessels of the shipping company are time chartered for long periods to important Italian and International Groups like Cosco , Armada Group , Cargill , North China Shipping, and others primary operators. The ISM manager for the MV ROSALIA D'AMATO is SHIPS SURVEYS & SERVICES SRL - likewise of Naples.
The bulker has a valid safety management certificate and is insured by Standard P&I Club per Charles Taylor & Co., but if the crew is covered by a valid ITF agreement could not be established.
According to media wires, the pirates fired on the 225-metre (738-foot) Panamax-type vessel during the assault but no one was injured and the captain and crew "are in good condition", said Carlo Miccio from the Naples-based company Perseveranza.
"The captain told me everything is okay, relatively speaking," he said. "He was trying to give me more information but the pirates understood what he was doing and they cut the line," he added. Miccio said that tracking equipment showed the ship, which was sailing from Brazil with a cargo of soy-beans, was "almost stationary".
However, other Italian sources stated that two small boats had approached with the pirates and the boarding was done without firing and with no bad consequences for the crew.
While the vessel was commandeered towards Somalia, with pirate-launch FV JIH CHUN TSAI 68 tethered to it, which in turn pulled two small skiffs, the U.S.American navy with the U.S.American warship, the USS Stephen W. Groveson, attacked the convoy, but could only destroy the two skiffs in the ill-advised and botched operation, which endangered all the hostages seriously. Luckily no casualties were reported in this incident. But in a second encounter between the same warship and the Taiwanese fishing vessel the Taiwanese captain was killed and two Chinese seamen wounded and the FV CHUN TSAI 68 was sunk. Several Somalis also were killed in this incident and the rest of the gang later set free at the Somali shores. Since they were part of the wider group holding MV Rosalia D'Amato this intervention certain had also no positive impact on a quick solution for the release of the merchant ship.
Vessel and crew are now still held off Ceel Dhanaane at the North-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia and it is understood that negotiations have not yet been really forthcoming.
Reports from the area at the end of July state that the crew is all right, given the circumstances, but that the pirates believe other cargo is hidden under the load, which they say is not only soy beans but also chemicals. Local elders had to intervene to stop them from digging through or offloading the cargo.
Vessel and crew are still held off Hobyo at the end of July.
MT GEMINI : Seized April 30, 2011. The Singapore-flagged chemical tanker MT GEMINI (IMO 8412352) was reported to have been boarded by pirates on 30. April 2011 at 04h03 UTC (07h03 local time) in position Latitude 07 01S Longitude 041 22E, off the Tanzanian coast - 115 nm ESE of Zanzibar Island, Tanzania.
NATO stated that they received their report only at 07h33 UTC on 01. May 2011, but confirmed the sea-jacking, stating that two skiffs were seen on board the vessel on her way to Somalia at position Latitude 02 47S and Longitude 043 03E. Just a day before the new sea-jacking NATO had released a map warning of pirate activity in that area. EU NAVFOR has not yet reported.
A press statement from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore last night said the vessel had sent out a distress signal at 11.50am Singapore time on Saturday.
The vessel has as registered owner GOLDEN SPRING LINE but is owner-managed by GLORY SHIP MANAGEMENT PTE LTD . - all of Singapore. The vessel is, however, in the moment on a spot charter for a Singapore charterer. The ship is insured by the North of England P&I Association, but the crew is not covered by an ITF agreement.
The company said the MT Gemini, an ABS class medium-range 29,871 deadweight tonne vessel, is believed to have been hijacked at about 12.30pm Singapore time on Saturday.
The vessel was carrying over 28,000 metric tonnes of crude palm oil from Kuala Tanjung in Indonesia to Mombasa in Kenya. It had left Kuala Tanjung, Sumatra, on April 16.
Glory Ship Management confirmed that four of the 25 men crew, including the captain, are from South Korea, 13 are from Indonesia, three are from Myanmar and five are from China.
Its Singapore office last made satellite phone contact with the ship captain in the early afternoon (Singapore time) on April 30 before contact was cut off.
"Our highest concerns are for the safety and well-being of the crew members. Since learning of the incident, Glory's management and its manning agents are exhausting all efforts to contact the family members of the crew in the respective countries," Glory said in a statement on Sunday. "We will make every effort to secure their release. The company is keeping the appropriate Singapore and international authorities fully informed of the situation. As our absolute priority is the safety and well-being of the crew, we are not at liberty to release any further details of the situation," it added.
The China Maritime Search and Rescue Center and the Chinese Embassy in Singapore separately confirmed that they have received report on the incident. The crew members include five Chinese nationals, China Maritime Search and Rescue Center said.
All four South Koreans on board, including the 56-year-old captain known by his family name Park, are in their 50s, and official from the Korean Foreign Ministry stated.
In April a Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) maritime patrol plane was deployed to beef up patrols against piracy in Gulf of Aden. The Fokker 50 Maritime Patrol Aircraft and 38 servicemen are supposed to scan the waters off Somalia and protect merchant ships in the area for three months. The team will be based in the Horn of Africa nation of Djibouti and will operate under the multinational Combined Task Force 151, which is now being led by Singaporeans. Rear-Admiral Harris Chan and 24 other Singapore Armed Forces servicemen have been leading the flotilla's four ships since April 1. They will coordinate counter-piracy operations with naval forces from the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and other navies till June.
The MV GEMINI was registered with MSC(HOA) and was reporting to UKMTO , is at present commandeered further north and already inside Somali waters.
The vessel's operator, Glory Ship Management, said they will lead negotiations with the pirates for a prompt release of all those on board the tanker.
After a brief halt off Mogadishu, the pirated MT GEMINI arrived at the pirate lair off Ceel Gaan (Harardheere District) at the Central Somali Indian Ocean coast on 04. May 2011.
Analysts fear that after the Indonesian Navy at the end of an otherwise excellent release operation for MV SINAR KUDUS spoiled the Indonesian success by killing the last four Somali pirates leaving the vessel the Somali sea-gangs will want to retain a final safety until they are on land and most likely will take in future now hostages with them as human shield. Especially hard treatment of the Indonesian hostages on MT GEMINI could also be a result.
"We are cooperating with the Singaporean government so our sailors will be treated well, given protection and freed soon," Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Marty Natalegawa told reporters.
"The captain of the vessel contacted the shipping line in Singapore earlier in the day via satellite phone and confirmed all crew members were unharmed," an official source said on 05. May 2011. He said South Korea's embassy in the Southeast Asian country has reported the contact to Seoul. The official, however, said the phone connection was bad and was broken very quickly so the shipping line is waiting to hear more information. At present, the hijackers have yet to make demands or ask the company to pay ransom for the crew and ship.
Htay Aung, a central executive committee member of the Seafarers Union of Burma (SUB), said that the pirates will demand money, but the crew is probably not in mortal danger.
The vessel was moored off Ceel Gaan but left towards Hobyo. Negotiations for the release of vessel and crew have reportedly commenced.
The Somali pirates holding among the other hostages also four South Koreans on MT GEMINI demanded on15 July through different media and phoney websites that the South Korean government must specifically release those pirate prisoners in South Korean jail and pay compensation for several of their relatives killed by a commando raid earlier this year.
"First, we want the South Korean government to change its foolish treatment of us and come with a better approach toward us," he said in a statement read to the AP. "Second, we want compensation from them because they killed our brothers and they also have to release others in their jails. After that we may reconsider holding their nationals in our hand s," he said.
Captain Pak Hyeon of the South Korean-managed, Singapore-flag hijacked Gemini contacted VOA by phone on July 16, saying the pirates want Seoul to pay compensation for eight dead comrades and release another five held prisoner. He said the pirates have not named a price.
He also said he and three other crew members are being kept separate from the other hostages. Pak said that the pirates are treating him and his fellow 24 crew members well and that they do not believe they are in any immediate danger. But he said they are fed only twice a day, kept inside aboard their ship and are homesick.
MV SHIHAAN (aka MV SHAAN - name not yet officially confirmed) : Seized 18 July 2011. Local marine observers reported on 18. July 2011 that three smaller cargo vessel were attacked by a large group of sea-shifta just off Bossaso, the harbour town of the Somali regional state of Puntland.
In the ensuing getaway bid the Somali pirates, who had taken a total of 67 seafarers from mainly Asian nations hostage caused damage to the engines in two of the boats, while struggling against the heavy swell.
The two limping vessels were then abandoned and the gang escaped in MV SHIHAAN, taking with them 19 crew from India and Pakistan as hostages and human shield.
The sea-shifta with this vessel didn't bother to come to the coast but took the vessel out to the sea in order to get larger prey.
FV NN PAKISTAN : Seized 09. August 2011. The fishing vessel from Pakistan with 14 crew members was seized by a pirate gang. On board around 20 more passengers where found, who are claimed to be insurgents with U.S.American, British, Italian and Arab nationalities. The armed passengers were first said to have been released at the shores of Bargaal against a substantial payment and had disappeared into the mountains above Xull, but later reports claimed that the group actually was taken then by the same fishing dhow to Kismayo, while the vessel and crew are still commandeered by the pirate group. Further reports are awaited.
MT FAIRCHEM BOGEY : Seized 20. August 2011. The 2010 built Chemical/Oil Tanker of 25,390 dwt MT FAIRCHEM BOGEY (IMO 9423750), sailing under Marshall Islands flag was at anchor in the designated anchorage area of Salalah port at Oman in position 16 54 N and 054 03 E and awaiting berthing instructions, when the conning hijackers managed at 01h50 UTC on 20. August 2010 to board the ship from a vessel that was ferrying a load of cattle.
India's Directorate General of Shipping said the Fairchem Bogey, managed by Mumbai-based Anglo-Eastern Ship Management, was hijacked while anchored in Salalah port. T. Hayase, president of Fairfield Japan Ltd., the Japanese subsidiary of Roseland, New Jersey-based vessel owner Fairfield- Maxwell Services Ltd., confirmed the hijack. Tom Boyd, director of external communications at APM Terminals, told Reuters there were no reported injuries or deaths among the crew, adding that the Omani government was negotiating with the pirates. APM Terminals has a 30 percent share in Salalah port and operates it for the government. "The Omani authorities are in discussion with the pirates. Government leaders have met this morning at the palace of the Sultan of Oman. At 8.28 a.m. the vessel sailed in the direction of Somalia," Boyd said.
The ship prior to reaching Salalah had discharged cargo at Al Jubail, Saudi Arabia and from Oman port and was to proceed towards China with a crew of 21 Indian seafarers on board, who are covered by an ITF agreement. The chem-tanker had earlier armed guards on board, but had released them in Oman.
The tanker is owned by EURUS MARITIME SA of Singapore and its ISM Manager is ANGLO-EASTERN Shipmanagement (Singapore) Pte Ltd., while it is under direct management of Fair FAIRFIELD CHEMICAL CARRIERS of Wilton, USA. The brand new vessel is insured by Japan Ship Owners' P&I Association.
A Salalah-based shipping source said the vessel was being loaded with methanol when it was seized.
According to Anglo-Eastern Management officials, all crew members, "appear safe with no injuries."
Giving details about the hijacking, the shipping company officials disclosed that when Omani Coast Guard approached the vessel the pirates asked them to move away to avoid casualties to the crew.
Questions have been raised why a new chem-tanker would be sailing from Oman to China without a load, just in ballast and without guards. The Fairchem Bogey's owners said they did at that time not have armed security on board, according to Harrie Harrison, a spokesman for the European Union Naval Force.
After the attack just 3 nautical miles off the Omani port of Salaleh , the vessel was commandeered to Somalia and then was taken towards the Somali coast.
Omani Directorate General of Shipping chief, Satish Agnihotri stated:"We are still not sure as to the demands of the hijackers who are probably from Somali coast. So far they have not contacted the owners or the company officials or any member of designated authorities."
Vessel and hostage crew arrived meanwhile off Garcad at the north-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia, where it is anchored now.
The vessel management company Anglo-Eastern Ship Management has sent its top executive group CEO Peter Cremers, who is greatly concerned for the well being of the crew and is doing his utmost as the manager of the ship, to hold talks with the sea pirates.
FV AL AMIN (aka AL AIN) : Seized August 27, 2011. The Yemeni fishing vessel, obviously engaged in illegal fishing, was attacked in waters off Somalia's Puntland regional state during the afternoon of 27. August 2011 off the tip of the Horn of Africa en route to Alula district of Puntland. Since the captors opened fire on the dhow 3 fishermen were wounded. 9 of the 13 Yemeni fishermen crew are reportedly at present held in captivity at Ras Bina near Bargaal on land, while the three wounded fishermen and the captain remain on the vessel, which is set to be used as piracy launch.
MV NN : Seized: August 31, 2011. According to Puntland Ports Minister Said Mohamed Rage two commercial vessels were hijacked by pirates on 29 August and 31 August, after leaving Bossaso harbour. The two vessels were transporting livestock for export from Puntland's Bossaso port to the Arabian Peninsula. On Saturday, Puntland security sources told Somali news agency Garowe Online that the first vessel has been arrested by Omani naval forces and NATO naval forces have surrounded the hijacked vessel and the pirates of the second case.
FVs NN IRAN : Four more Iranian fishing vessels are missing and wanted. The dates when they were allegedly seajacked by Somali pirates are not known exactly, but we have at least one vessel name: FV HASSAM , a boat which was captured 70 nautical miles off the port of Eyl at the North-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia, and three of their official registration numbers: 4/2922, 4/2985, and 4/3718.Iranian FV AL FAYAD (aka AL FAJAD aka AL AFINIYA) (Reg: 4/3672) was attacked on 20. April 2011 by the Danish navy, killing six - including possibly one crew member and wounding 5 (including one Iranian crew member), off Hobyo and then was attacked again by the same navy operating under NATO and sunk on 21. April 2011. While the 4 Pakistani crew members could already be flown out a humanitarian problem remains in this case to now also repatriate the remaining 10 Iranian crew members.
Unfortunately no exact crew lists for the Iranian vessels are usually provided, but it is estimated that at least 45 more Iranian fishermen are held on these boats.
One of the sea-jacked Iranian fishing vessels with the registration number 4/3739 was set free on 01. April 2011 by the Danish navy wounding three Somalis while operating under NATO. At the same time the Dutch "liberated" another vessel, MSV HORMUZ (aka URMUZ), which had been seized January 21, 2011 with killing two Somalis and wounding five. In both cases - after repairs - the vessels could sail off, while the two dead Somalis were dumped by the Dutch into the ocean, which caused widespread uproar in Somalia and internationally.
Latest reports stated that two earlier abducted Iranian fishing vessels with the registration numbers 4/3785 and 4/4050 reached on 8. February 2011 and one fishing vessel with the registration 4/3810 and 18 crew reached on 19 Feb 2011 their home ports in Iran safely, though some of the crew were injured. The six Somalis on pirated MSV AL SAADI gave themselves up to the U.S.American navy and the dhow was set free with 15/16 Pakistanis - where the Iranian members of the originally 22 men crew remain is not clear, while one seafarer died.
We try to establish the fate of the others.
On 02. June 2011 at 09h55UTC on e of these fishing dhows nicknamed "JELBUT 31" was observed as being under pirate control and conducting piracy or smuggling operations in the vicinity of position 02 19N and 050 00E. Her two empty attack skiffs in tow were then destroyed by a German frigate.
On 10. June 2011 at 12h05UTC the position of the vessel was reported from 05 55S-041 and 34E. The vessel is still under pirate control, but not longer considered a threat.
Please send any report concerning these vessels or any other information to office[AT]ecoterra-international.org
~ * ~
OTHER CASES NOT COMPLETELY CLOSED:
- please see: Status of not yet resolved Maritime Incidences off Somalia
THIS INFORMATION IS ALSO A WARNING TO VESSELS TRAVERSING THE SOMALI BASIN TO BE AWARE OF LARGER VESSELS BEING USED AS LAUNCHING PAD AND DECOY FOR PIRACY ATTACKS .
All vessels navigating in the Indian Ocean are advised to consider keeping East of 60E when routing North/South and to consider routing East of 60E and South of 10S when proceeding to and from ports in South Africa, Tanzania and Kenya.
The Indian Government has issued a NOTICE on 30th March 2010: All Indian-flagged motorized sailing vessels are - with immediate effect - no longer permitted to ply the waters south and west of a line joining Salalah (Oman) and Malé (Maldives).
NOTIFICATION BY THE INDIAN GOVERNMENT
- Issued by The Directorate General of Shipping, Mumbai.
DIRECTIONS 31. March 2010
The Directorate has issued directions prohibiting the trading of mechanized sailing vessels south and west of the line joining Salalah and Male, with immediate effect.
Likewise the Government of Sri Lanka has issued a decree instructing especially their fishing vessels not to venture further west than the latitude 70 degrees East.
NON-MARITIME HOSTAGE CASES IN SOMALIA:
Missing:
Briton Murray Watson and Kenyan Patrick Amukhuma are missing since 01. April 2008. They were working on a U.N.-funded project in the Juba valley, were seized by gunmen near Bua'le and taken to Jilib, 280 km (175 miles) south of Mogadishu. Media reports until November 2010 maintained they are still being held and close sources reveal that the case is one of a so far Unsuccessful Resolution with no independent proof of live since a long time. While, based on reports from the ground, it could be assumed that Patrick Amukhuma had died, the meanwhile penniless Kenyan-Somali spouse with 3 children of Mr. Watson appealed as recently as October 2010 again for the return of the British researcher. Last observations from Salagle in the Jubba Valley revealed certain activities, which indicate that the case might no longer be a real hostage case.
Political hostage:
French officer Denis Allex. Somali gunmen kidnapped two French security advisers working for the Somali TFG government from the Sahafi Hotel in Mogadishu on July 14 2009. Police said one escaped on Aug. 26 after killing three of his captors, but Marc Aubriere denied killing anyone and said he slipped away while his guards slept. A video released by Al Shabab was showing the second officer still being held and political demands for his release were made by Al Shabab. On June 9, 2010 the video appeared on a website often used by Islamist militant groups, which said the hostage, named as Denis Allex, had issued a "message to the French people". The video showed the captive in an orange outfit with armed men standing behind him.
France has received "proof of life" of one of its secret agents held hostage in Somalia since July 2009, the French foreign intelligence service DGSE said on Tuesday, 27. December 2010. A DGSE source said the service had received "a reply to a personal question" to which Denis Allex, a French secret agent kidnapped by an Islamist group on July 14, 2009, was able to respond, proving he was alive.
"No detail was given by his captors on the state of his health nor on his location or the conditions in which he is being held," the source added. Several, but not very serious attempts from both sides have been made recently to solve the case. Denis Allex is still held somewhere in the Bay-Bakol area.
With the latest captures and releases now still at least 31 (plus 18) seized vessels (of presently 52 listed as not secured) and one barge with a total of not less than 528 hostages or captives are accounted for. Despite a directive by the Philippine government that no Pinoy seafarer should ply these dangerous routes, there are numerous Filipinos currently held captive by pirates . All cases are monitored on our actual case-list, while several other cases of ships, which were observed off the coast of Somalia and have been reported or had reportedly disappeared without a trace or information, are still being followed too. While in 2005 there were only three merchant ships molested off the coast of Somalia and in 2006 four (two merchant and two fishing vessels), in 2007 when Abdullahi Yussufs soldiers had returned to Puntland and were trained to become sea-bandits as well as after the enlargement of the CTF 150 fleet then there were 13 (incl. many fishing vessels and small merchant vessels) ships captured. In 2008 with the onset of CTF 151 and the US funded Puntland Intelligence Service (PIS) and the inception of the EU NAVFOR armada over 134 incidences (including attempted attacks, averted attacks and successful sea-jackings) had been recorded for Somalia with 49 fully documented, factual sea-jacking cases and the mistaken sinking of one captured illegal fishing vessel with the killing of her crew by the Indian naval force. For 2009 the account closed with 228 incidences (incl. averted or abandoned attacks) with 68 vessels seized for different reasons on the Somali/Yemeni captor side as well as at least TWELVE wrongful attacks (incl. one friendly fire incident) on the side of the naval forces, including the horrible murder of Yemeni and Somali fishermen in a mid-nightly raid on a natural harbour in Puntland committed by a Norwegian commando unit.
For 2010 the recorded account around the Horn of Africa stood at 243 incidences with 202 direct attacks by Somali sea-shifta resulting in 74 sea-jackings on the one side and on the other the sinking of one merchant vessel (MV AL-ABI ) by machine-gun fire from the Seychelles's coastguard boat TOPAZ (11 Somalis now jailed for 10 years in the Seychelles) as well as the wrongful attack by the Indian navy on an innocent Yemeni fishing vessel and the sinking of FV SIRICHAI NAVA 11 with many injured sailors and at least five people from the vessel and 8 attackers dead. Sea-jacked MV AL-ASSA - without its original Yemeni crew - was used as pirate vessel and likewise sunk while the Somali captors allegedly were released on land. In addition four Somali fishermen were killed by naval helicopter, which the navies cowardly never identified, at Labad north of Hobyo and one fisherman has killed by AMISOM forces near Mogadishu harbour.
For 2011 the recorded account stands at confirmed 167 incidences with 135 direct attacks and at least 40 sea-jackings with hostage taking, while 10 foreign seafarers died in these incidences this year around the Horn of Africa.
The naval alliances had since August 2008 and until May 2010 apprehended 1090 suspected pirates, detained and kept or transferred for prosecution 480, killed at least 64 and wounded over 24 Somalis. (Independent update on the killings of Somalis see: EXCLUSIV - whereby it must be stated that while trying to keep up with the killings and arrests, the deportations of Somalis or cases where they were set out again without supplies to face sure death on the ocean - like the Russians did in at least one case - it is due to the in-transparency of the navies extremely difficult and hard to keep track and the journalist who maintained these statistics gave up to count and started a new blogon the foreign military adventures of the EU). It must, be noted that most navies have become since the beginning of 2010 extremely secretive and do neither report properly to the Somali government, which is compulsory according to the UN security council resolutions nor to the UN itself or through their media outlets on the real number of casualties and injuries they inflict.
ECOTERRA Intl. calls many of the death-cases which occur in the piracy- as well as in the anti-piracy-circus EXTRAJUDICIAL KILLINGS - if not outright murder - and has requested already several times that thorough investigations have to follow each incident and the findings to be made public. The UN must be held fully accountable for upholding the believes in the navies that they would act legally and must account for each and every act committed under their banner. All acts committed by Somalis as well as all acts committed by the navies must be scrutinized with the same impartial zeal to let justice prevail.
Without a declaration of war by any nation of the UN and or by any of the states sending those navies, who are hiding behind illegal UN resolution constructs, these nations are waging war against the majority of innocent Somali people and are committing murder with impunity, while neither the sates nor the UN or the Somali governance are following up. Only in rare cases the real culprits of piracy and crimes committed on the High Seas or in the territorial waters of Somalia are brought to to book. The UN and all the navies are betting on the fact that the Somalis - a majority being illiterate - do not have the knowledge and means to legally follow up on cases of outright murder and illegitimate warfare, and know that the present Somali governance is not in a position to defend the Somali people against any aggressor or injustices brought against them by foreign hands. The UN and the navies have lost their moral standing by not investigating these acts.
Reports of not well documented cases of absconded vessels are not listed in the sea-jack count until clarification. Several other vessels with unclear fate (although not in the actual count), who were reported missing over the last ten years in this area, are still kept on our watch-list, though in some cases it is presumed that they sunk due to bad weather or being unfit to sail or like the S/Y Serenity and MV Indian Ocean Explorer were sunk to cover their drug-smuggling activities. Present multi-factorial risk assessment code: RS: YELLOW / SRS: ORANGE / GoA: ORANGE / AS: YELLOW / NIO: YELLOW / SIO: YELLOW (EXCEPT PEMBA CHANNEL: ORANGE) (Red = Very much likely, high season; Orange = Reduced risk, but very likely, Yellow = significantly reduced risk, but still likely, Blue = risk low but still possible, Green = unlikely). With the onset of the monsoon winds and rough seas piracy cases decline. Piracy incidents usually degrade during the monsoon season and rise gradually by the end of the monsoon. Starting from mid February until early April as well as around October every year an increase in piracy cases can be expected.
If you have any additional information concerning the cases, please send to office[at]ecoterra-international.org - if required we guarantee 100% confidentiality.
For further details and regional information request the Somali Marine and Coastal Monitor (SMCM) and see the situation map of thePIRACY COASTS OF SOMALIA (2011). See the archive at www.australia.to and news on www.international.to
EMERGENCY HELPLINES: sms or call: +254-719-603-176 / +254-714-747-090
- email: office[AT]ecoterra.net (First reponders: You will be requested to verify your mail)
East Africa ILLEGAL FISHING AND WASTE DUMPING HOTLINE: +254-714-747-090 (confidentiality guaranteed) - email: marine[AT]ecop.info
MEDIAL ASSISTANCE RADIO (MAR) network on 14,332.0 USB every day from 07h30 UTC to 08h00 UTC
ECOTERRA Intl. is an international nature protection and human rights organization, whose Africa offices in Somalia, Kenya and Tanzania also monitor the marine and maritime situation along the East African Indian Ocean coasts as well as the Gulf of Aden. ECOTERRA is working in Somalia since 1986 and does focus in its work against piracy mainly on coastal development, marine protection and pacification. ECOP-marine (www.ecop.info) is an ECOTERRA group committed to fight against all forms of crime on the waters. Both stand firm against illegal fishing as well as against marine overexploitation and pollution.
N.B.: This status report is mainly for the next of kin of seafarers held hostage, who often do not get any information from the ship-owners or their governments, and shall serve as well as clearing-house for the media. Unless otherwise stated it is for educational purposes only. Request for further details can be e-mailed to: somalia[at]ecoterra.net (you have to verify your mail). Our reporting without fear or favour is based on integrity and independence.
Witnesses and whistle-blowers with proper information concerning naval operations and atrocities, acts of piracy or other crimes on the seas around the Horn of Africa, hostage case backgrounds and especially concerning illegal fishing and toxic wast dumping or pollution by ships as well as any environmental information, can call our 24h numbers and e-mail confidentially or even anonymously or to office[AT]ecoterra-international.org and also can request a PGP-key for secure transmission.
KEEP US STRONG AND INDEPENDENT! Send your support-fund offers to ecotrust[AT]ecoterra[DOT]net. If it is your first contact please respond to the verification mail you will receive so that we get your mail and we'll send you then the details. Only with your help and the support of clean money from honest sponsors we can continue our independent research, unbiased information dissemination and awareness creation as well as to achieve the envisioned impact with hands-on projects directly up front and on the ground.
These e-mails are sent to our many thousand recipients with different priorities. If you need them closer to the publication time and earlier than you actually receive them, please request a higher priority on the list-serve, which like the unsubscription requests should be sent to mailhub[at]ecoterra.net (at first contact you have to verify your mail).
SUPPORT WANTED: With now still over 30 cases to monitor and to respond to calls of crews and families for help, our team has too much work. Volunteers from in- and outside Somalia are therefore welcome to support our efforts. Please send a mail to: office[AT]ecoterra-international.org IF YOU CAN AND WANT TO HELP.
© 2011, ECOTERRA SOMALIA, Mogadishu. This compilation or parts of it may be reprinted and republished as long as the content remains unaltered, and ECOTERRA Intl. is cited as source. 929
|
|
0 comments:
Post a Comment