Somali pirates seize 5 ships in 48 hours

[no waiii]

omg pirates are you serious lol?

Somali pirates have seized ships from France, Britain, Germany, Taiwan and Yemen, defying world naval powers by prowling further out in the Indian Ocean to target victims.

Ransom-hunting pirates equipped with skiffs, guns and grapnels took five ships in 48 hours, the latest two on Monday a British cargo ship and Taiwanese fishing vessel.

At least 17 ships and more than 250 hostages are now in pirate hands.

"There were two more hijackings today. There is one Italian-operated British-owned ship and a Taiwanese vessel near the Seychelles," an official involved in regional piracy monitoring told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The Seychelles government said it received a distress call saying a Taiwanese fishing vessel, the MV Winfar 161, and its 29 crew was hijacked in its exclusive economic zone, north of Denis island.

Transport Minister Joel Morgan said military forces had been deployed to intercept the pirates, amid reports that three more Taiwanese ships were trying to escape capture.

The information centre of the European Union's anti-piracy naval mission Atalanta confirmed Monday's second hijacking.

"A 32,000 tonne UK-owned and Italian-operated bulk carrier was hijacked early this morning in the Gulf of Aden. Few details are known at this stage, but the mixed nationality crew are believed to be safe," it said.

Ecoterra International, an environment group monitoring illegal marine activities in the region, reported that a small French yacht was captured on Saturday about 640km off Ras Hafun in northeast Somalia and was heading towards Somali Puntland.

The French foreign ministry said it was checking the report but Ecoterra said brief satellite phone contact was made with the vessel on Sunday.

"Local marine observers stated the attack was reportedly launched from a captured Yemeni fishing vessel" in the Indian Ocean, Ecoterra said.

A French official in Paris said the hostages were two couples and a small child.

Hundreds of ransom-hunting Somali pirates have hijacked dozens of ships over the past year, mostly merchant vessels plying one of the world's busiest maritime trade routes.

They operate from skiffs towed by pirate "mother ships", which are often hijacked fishing vessels. Last year, their haul included a Ukrainian cargo loaded with combat tanks and a Saudi supertanker.

More than 130 attacks, including close to 50 successful hijackings, were reported in 2008, threatening the vital shipping lane and spurring the international community into joint naval action.

On Sunday, a Kenya-based maritime official confirmed pirates had also seized a German container vessel.

The ship was taken on Saturday about 400 nautical miles from the Somali coast, between Kenya and the Seychelles, said Andrew Mwangura, of the East African Seafarers Assistance Program.

Ecoterra also reported an Indian cargo ship, the Shehenshah-e-Medina, and its 18 crew were recently released by Somali pirates after being held for close to a week.

The group's statement quoted Ahmed Bhaya, secretary of the Salaya Vessel Owners Association, as saying the ship, which was not carrying any cargo, was hijacked on March 30.

It said pirates captured a Yemeni tugboat, the Al-Ghaith, and its seven crew on Sunday.

The number of attacks had dipped since the start of the year, owing to an increased international naval presence in the Gulf of Aden and unfavourable seas.

But some pirate groups have ventured far into the Indian Ocean, southeast of Somalia, to target ships further out at sea, away from heavily patrolled shipping corridors.

[Corporal]

http://www.weebls-stuff.com/toons/Somalia/

[no waiii]

http://www.weebls-stuff.com/toons/Somalia/

LOL at that

[PaulMacC]

It's all Monkey D Luffy I tell ya'!
I didnt know pirates still are about.

[no waiii]

Yer lol, but what i wanna know is they have little crap boats and the manage to take over 32,000 crago tone ships, like how dose that happen they dont even compare in size its unreal lol

[xxMATTGxx]

Countries need to send more navy support to that region to try and stop this. But I don't know what to say and most companies just want to pay them off.

[no waiii]

Countries need to send more navy support to that region to try and stop this. But I don't know what to say and most companies just want to pay them off.

It said in the story that they did that, but the just moved to the indian ocean or somwere that was not as heavly partrolled

[Jordy]

Yer lol, but what i wanna know is they have little crap boats and the manage to take over 32,000 crago tone ships, like how dose that happen they dont even compare in size its unreal lol

Not really, the small boats are far more manoeuvrable and faster. They've got guns and the big boats have absolutely nothing, just a vulnerable crew which can't do anything.

I really have no sympathy for these boats being seized, they're just greedy companies which gamble their ships and staff because they don't want to pay for any security, a security guard or any weapons on-board. As a result of this they're wasting the Navy's time and money.

btw that Weebl link is hilarious, based on the 'Kenya' song which was also awesome

[Oleh]

i think every cargo boat should have a heavily trained security team tbh

[Laggings]

United States will bomb them out of the water. We are teh 1336 1/2.