Michele Lynn Ballarin

Who is Michele Lynn Ballarin of The Plains, Virginia (aka Michele Lynn Golden-Ballarin)? Michele Lynn Ballarin is a Virginia entrepreneur who sells real estate, horses and body armor. She also, with her husband, also sells military tactics. Which has earned her a place of respect in Somali Society. Select Armor designs and makes body armor and provides executive protection to wealthy individuals. She has a long history of involvement in Somalia, including allegations that she was helping plan military operations there in 2006. “Amira” (or "Princess" in Arabic) was Ballarin’s nickname when she was helping plan military operations in Somali during 2006.

She is trying to market a solution for failed states through Black Star. If she can demonstrate that it works in Somalia, which has not had a functioning unitary government in 19 years, she would have an excellent product to sell. She discussed her company's participation as a CIA intermediary in the militarization of Somalia, even revealing her company's use of three military bases. She claims she has been given 'carte blanche' to use three bases in Somalia 'and the air access to reach them'. She then suggests that the CIA have been kept informed of the plans.

Ballarin's companies:
Select Armor
Select Armor SourceWatch

Black Star

Cambridge Wealth Management Ltd. SourceWatch
(aka Cambridge Asset Management)

Somali Pirates Call on American Benefactor Military.com spoke with Ballarin for more than an hour Nov. 24 and she told us she has been in regular touch with the pirates by satellite phone, the last contact was Monday at 5 p.m. Eastern Time, and had just returned from Somalia Nov. 18. Ballarin said she is not only negotiating with the pirates holding that Saudi tanker, she is also in touch with the MV Faina, the Ukrainian ship loaded with grenade launchers, ammunition and 33 Russian-made T-72 tanks. "I'm in communication with both ships on a regular basis," she said. Ballarin's goal is even bigger than helping end the takeover of the two ships. She wants to negotiate an end to piracy off the Somali coast altogether. "My goal is to unwind all 17 ships and all 450 people they've been holding," she said. (Military.com, 11/25/2008) [excellent interview and background]

PRETTY WOMEN, THE CIA AND SOMALIAN PIRATES Once again, the CIA is repeating the same gambit it first used to fuel the original war on terror against the Soviets in Afghanistan, that of using an attractive wealthy socialite to front for the agency, in promoting the government's secret agenda for world domination. Ballarin owns a Blackwater clones, called Select Armor and Black Star, which she is using to further the agency's mercenary solution for failed states, using ruthless unaccountable private soldiers to do the work that is too dirty for regular government troops. (Peter Chamberlain, 11/29/2008)

Current Articles & News v.4

Here are links to current articles and new releases regarding the crisis of international hijacking by pirates (terrorists).

Report: Oceania Nautica not the only cruise ship attacked by pirates in recent days A news outlet in Germany today is reporting that the pirate attack on the Oceania Nautica Sunday in the Gulf of Aden wasn't the only raid on a cruise ship in recent days. German broadcaster Deutsche Welle says suspected pirates also targeted a German cruise ship, MS Astor, operated by Transocean Tours last week but were chased away by a German naval vessel, the frigate Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. (USA Today, 12/05/2008)

Cruise Ship Attacked by Somali Pirates A luxury cruise ship carrying passengers between Rome and Singapore came under attack from Somali pirates as it sailed between Somalia and Yemen on Sunday. The Nautica, an Oceania cruise ship, was carrying 690 American, British and Australian passengers and a 386-member crew when two small fishing boats tried to intercept it. (FOXNews 12/01/2008)

Somali pirates to free Yemen cargo ship Somali pirates have agreed to release a Yemeni cargo ship without ransom after successful negotiations between the hijackers, local elders and a Yemeni official, a local official said on Monday. "No ransom was paid, but after negotiations, the pirates will get off the ship soon. The Yemeni ship will be released in the coming hours," Ali Abdi Aware, state minister of the northern province of Puntland, told Reuters. The MV Amani was seized on Nov. 25. (Reuters, 12/01/2008)

Legal Hurdles in West Slow Pursuit of Pirates The latest attack, in which even trained security personnel aboard could not deter the pirates, demonstrated the urgent need for coordinated action by governments from Cairo to Berlin. But the bureaucratic and legal hurdles facing international institutions and national governments have so far defeated most efforts to deal with the nimble crews of pirates in speedboats, whose tactics have grown bolder as their profits have paid for better weapons and equipment. (NYTimes, 11/28/2008)

4 Pirates Killed in Standoff off Coast of Sierra Leone Pirates attacked a Chinese fishing vessel in a rare attack off West Africa, officials said Thursday. Four of the pirates, all from neighboring Guinea, were killed early Wednesday in a clash with the Sierra Leone navy, police spokesman Mohamed Samura said. Two were shot and another two drowned, he said. The remaining four were arrested. The pirates approached the Shanghai 3 before dawn off Yeliboya, a coastal town between Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, and Conakry, the neighboring capital of Guinea. (FOX News 11/27/2008)

U.S. Woman Negotiating With Somali Pirates An American businesswoman with connections to U.S. intelligence and the military has been talking with the Somali pirates who have commandeered the Saudi oil tanker Sirius Star, trying to get the ship released, ABC News has confirmed. First reported by Military.com, the pirates, who have halted all talks with the ship's owners, are talking to a woman named Michele Lynn Ballarin, instead. (ABCNews, 11/27/2008)

Pirates move Saudi tanker after militants' threats Somali pirates have taken their greatest prize - a Saudi supertanker with $100 million of crude oil - farther offshore in what appears to be a rare defensive move after threats by Islamic insurgents. Last Friday, Islamic fighters promised to fight the pirates and free the ship because it was Muslim-owned and flagged under Saudi Arabia. Two days later, pirates moved the ship about 28 miles, putting it about 30 miles off the coast of the coastal village of Harardhere. (AP/Boston.com, 11/26/2008)

Hobyo, Mudug, Somalia

Hobyo (aka Obbia, Hobyaa, Hoboyo) Somalia (Google Earth, coordinates:95.20'58.35" N 48.31'36.60" E) is where three hijacked vessels are being held by pirates (MV Capt. Stephanos, MV Centauri and MV Faina). [click on Google Earth photograph for close-up]




Hobyo Wikipedia

Hobyo SiloBreaker

Waiting for the Neustrashimy, off the Somali Coast at Hobyo, Ecoterra 27th Update "The task of the destroyer Neustrashimy (Unchallengeable) is to escort and protect Russian vessels or ships with Russian crew-members on board from pirate attacks," Russian Navy spokesman Capt. Igor Dygalo said according to RIA Novosti. Other maritime sources, however, claimed the Russian warship had already arrived in Somali waters. The Russian deployment has raised media speculation that Moscow, which has dealt harshly with hostage-takers in the past, could use force to free the crew of the MV FAINA. Russia's central command, however, had earlier ruled out a direct military engagement with the situation concerning the weapon-laden ship pinned down at the Somali coast by several US and EU navy ships plus a submarine in the area, which regularly is also spotted further South near Mogadishu harbour. (Buzzle.com 10/21/2008)

List of Vessels Hijacked v.2

Here is a partial list of vessels hijacked by pirates:

MS Biscaglia von Pirenaico, (Liberia) 11/28/2008,






Adina (Yemeni), 11/19/2008

Chemstar Venus 11/15/2008







Tianyu (China) 11/13/2008








The Karagol (Turkey) 11/12/2008

Stolt Strength, 11/10/2008

MS Centauri








African Sanderling 10/15/2008








Capt. Stephanos (Bahama) 09/21/2008







Bunga Melati 5 (Malaysia) 08/29/2008






Lehmann Timber (German) 05/28/2008

Current Articles & News v.3

Here are links to current articles and new releases regarding the crisis of international hijacking by pirates (terrorists).

Latitude 4.595N, longitude 48.085E: We find the hijacked Sirius Star From a vantage point 423 miles above the Earth, the lawless waters of the Gulf of Aden appear tranquil and the 330-metre-long ship sitting low under a £68m cargo looks like a tiny green cigar floating on an inky ocean. These pictures, taken by a satellite commissioned by the Guardian and hurtling over Africa at four miles a second, show the Sirius Star, the Saudi supertanker which 12 days ago became the biggest prize ever seized by the Somali pirates who have claimed the Gulf of Aden as their hunting ground. The images also reveal a triangle of ships, three of the 40 vessels to have been hijacked in Somali waters this year. Although not as vast as the Sirius Star, the Stolt Strength, the African Sanderling and the Yasa Neslihan are together home to 64 seafarers, two-thirds of them from the Philippines. (GuardianUK, 11/27/2008)

FACTBOX-Ships held by Somali pirates Information on twelve ships, believed still being help by pirates, including: Centauri, Capt. Stephanos, Faina, African Sanderling, Stolt Strength, The Karagol, Tianyu, Chemstar Venus, Sirius Star, The Delight, Adina, and MS Biscaglia. (Reuters, 11/28/2008)

Somali pirates hijack ship, British guards escape Somali pirates hijacked a chemical tanker with dozens of Indian crew members Friday and a helicopter rescued three British security guards who had jumped into the sea, officials said. A warship on patrol nearby sent helicopters to intervene in the attack, but they arrived after pirates had taken control of the Liberian-flagged ship, according to Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center in Malaysia. (MyWay, 11/28/2008)

Battling the Somali Pirates: The Return of the Islamists T.E. Lawrence ("of Arabia") famously compared counterinsurgency warfare to "eating soup with a knife." The same idea might apply to the efforts of Western navies to protect commercial shipping from the marauding pirates of Somalia, except for the fact that soup is typically contained within a bowl, and the pirates have the freedom of a vast ocean in which to move. But if the pirates have the wind at their backs out at sea, they got some bad news back on shore last weekend, when five armored vehicles loaded with fighters of the Islamist Shabab militia arrived in the port town of Harardhere, where the pirates who seized the Sirius Star are based. (Time 11/25/2008)

Somali Pirates Hijack Another Ship, Drop Ransom for Saudi Tanker Pirates seized the MV Adina in the Gulf of Aden as it headed to the Yemeni island of Socotra, according to Yemen's official news agency. The ship was carrying over 500 tons of steel and seven crew members from Somalia, Yemen and Panama. (Voice of America, 11/25/2006)

Somalian Terror Organization Shabaab al Mujahideen Looks to 'Throw the West Into Hell' Shabaab al Mujahideen, which espouses radical Islamic rule and has close ties to Al Qaeda, is best known for operating training camps for people seeking a more extreme form of Jihad. It also has been forging relations with Somali pirates who have recently been intercepting and holding for ransom several international shipping vessels. Shabaab's ultimate goal, as articulated in an April statement, is to throw the West "into hell.” (FOX News, 11/25/2008)

Pirate Attacks Fail to Revive Tumbling Tanker Rates Oil shipping costs may extend this year's 76 percent rout as shrinking energy demand and a global recession eclipse disruptions caused by pirates off east Africa capturing their largest-ever freighter. Tanker rates next month are about 7 percent lower than yesterday's level on the Persian Gulf to Japan route, according to derivative contracts called Forward Freight Agreements that trade privately among banks, brokers, hedge funds and shipping companies. Transport costs plunged this year as OPEC curtailed production, lowering demand for vessels. (Bloomberg, 11/25/2008)

Pirate ‘Mother Ship’ or Thai Trawler? As if things weren’t chaotic enough in the Gulf of Aden: a suspected pirate ship that was sunk last week by the Indian Navy now appears to have actually been a Thai fishing trawler, according to CNN, which cites the ship’s owner. But it turns out now that the “mother ship” may not have been in pirate hands very long. According to the CNN report, the ship was the trawler Ekawat Nava 5, which had been headed from Oman to Yemen to deliver fishing equipment when it was attacked by pirates off the Horn of Africa, according to Wicharn Sirichaiekawat, owner of the Ekawat Nava 5. The pirates were still taking control of the ship when the Tabar moved in, he said. (NY Times, 11/25/2008)

World Scrambles To Deal With Pirate Threat The most important things in life are simple, at least in the world of Erik Prince. A square-jawed American with closely cropped hair, Prince served as an elite soldier in the U.S. Marines in Bosnia, Haiti and the Middle East. Given his experience, he believes that it will be relatively easy for him to distinguish between good and evil on the new battlefield, the high seas. "If a couple of guys are sitting in a six-meter (20-foot) fishing boat, in the middle of the Gulf of Aden, and if they've got bazookas in their hands, they're clearly not out there for the fishing," says Prince, 39, the CEO of Blackwater Worldwide, the world's largest and most infamous private security firm. "You have a pretty good idea of what they're up to." (Free Internet Press, 11/25/2008)

Why Don't We Hang Pirates Anymore? Year-to-date, Somalia-based pirates have attacked more than 90 ships, seized more than 35, and currently hold 17. Some 280 crew members are being held hostage, and two have been killed. Billions of dollars worth of cargo have been seized; millions have been paid in ransom. A multinational naval force has attempted to secure a corridor in the Gulf of Aden, through which 12% of the total volume of seaborne oil passes, and U.S., British and Indian naval ships have engaged the pirates by force. Yet the number of attacks keeps rising. (Wall Street Journal, 11/25/2008)

Eyl, Somalia

Eyl, Somalia has been identified as a stratgic Somalian village, sympathetic to pirates and international martitime hijacking. This Google Earth view of the Eyl (harbor) port area (Google Earth, coordinates:7.57'44.10" N 49.50'43.58E), is 3.51 kilometers (southeast) from the village of Eyl. [click on photo to see close-up view]

This is village of Eyl, Somalia (Google Earth, coordinates:7.58'47.50N 49.49'00.83E). [click on Google Earth map to see close up of village]




Eyl Wikipedia

Eyl SiloBreaker

A Brigand's Eyl View Of The Sea The Indian naval warship ins Tabar has roiled the Gulf of Aden, warding off two piracy attempts early in November and then, a week later, dramatically sinking a fishing trawler the pirates had overpowered with the purported aim of using it for another foray. From then on, the swirling sea washing the shores of Eyl in Somalia has a murmur only the pirates can decipher. (Outlook India 12/08/2008)

Harardehere, Somalia

Harardhere, Somalia is frequently referred to as the home of the Somalian pirates. Here is the view from Google Earth, coordinates: 4.391564 N and 47.512387 E [click on image for close-up]

Harardhere: the capital of Somali piracy Harardhere, a tiny Somali village which could fit in its entirety on the bridge of the Saudi super-tanker but has emerged as the piracy capital of the world. Located some 300 km north of the capital Mogadishu, Harardhere is the main base for a group of pirates currently holding the Sirius Star, an arms-laden Ukrainian cargo and other ships. The village lies some distance from the coast and is populated mainly by members of the Hawiye clan, the largest in Somalia and the backbone of the opposition to the government and Ethiopia's military presence. (Indopia, 11/20/2008)

Harardhere (Wikipedia)

Current Articles & News v.2

Here are links to current articles and new releases regarding the crisis of international hijacking by pirates (terrorists).

Learning with the Times: Kandla infamous for pirates attacking anchored ships According to the Geneva Convention, any illegal act of violence, detention or damage committed by the crew of a private ship directed against another ship on the high seas is piracy. A government ship cannot be called a pirate ship, unless its crew has mutinied. Most of these activities take place in international waters, which are not included in the territorial limits or as the internal waters of any country and hence are not actively patrolled in most cases. (The Times of India, 11/24/2008)

Saudi Arabia to Join NATO Naval Mission; Pirates Boost Defenses Saudi Arabia said it will join a fleet of NATO warships on an anti-piracy mission, as hijackers bolstered defenses around an oil-laden Saudi tanker captured off the East African coast. The kingdom will contribute "naval assets to help in pursuing piracy in the region, and this is the only way this can be dealt with," Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal told reporters in Oslo today after meeting with his Norwegian counterpart, Jonas Gahr Stoere. "Negotiations and ransoms only encourage piracy and are not a solution." (Bloomberg 11/21/2008)

Islamists on trail of Somali pirates Dozens of Somali Islamist insurgents stormed a port on Friday hunting the pirates behind the seizure of a Saudi supertanker that was the world's biggest hijack, a local elder said. Separately, police in the capital Mogadishu said they had ambushed and shot dead 17 Islamist militants, in the latest illustration of the chaos in the Horn of Africa country that has fueled a dramatic surge in piracy. (Reuters, 11/21/2008)

Fear of piracy blocks global trade route for shipping giant Maersk The global economy suffered a new blow yesterday as Maersk, the world’s largest shipping company, announced that it would no longer put its tankers at the mercy of pirates off Somalia. Maersk’s decision to stop plying the route through the perilous waters came as pirates on board the super-tanker Sirius Star issued a $25 million (£17 million) ransom demand, with a warning of “disastrous” consequences if the money were not paid. (TimesOnline, 11/21/2008)

Pirates bolster defenses around hijacked tanker Somali pirates are building up their defences around a captured Saudi Arabian super-tanker after demanding a $25 million ransom for the ship and its huge cargo of crude oil. As foreign warships steam into the area and shipping companies work out alternative routes for their vessels, extra militiamen and other fighters are being brought into the pirate lair of Harardhere. “Some of them are inside the town and others are taking shelter in a nearby village and can be called if need be,” Mohamed Awale, a local resident, told AFP. He said the fighters had come from the neighbouring Gulgudud and Mudug regions. They were not the only arrivals in the town. Islamist militiamen and hardline Shebab fighters were also pouring into the town, although it was unclear whether they were angered by the capture of a Saudi boat or simply wanted their share of the loot. (Time Online, 11/21/2008)

Pirates Demand $25 Million Ransom for Hijacked Tanker (Update1) Somali pirates demanded $25 million in ransom for an oil-laden Saudi supertanker seized off the East African coast, and called on its owners to pay up "soon". "What we want for this ship is only $25 million because we always charge according to the quality of the ship and the value of the product," a man who identified himself as Abdi Salan, a member of the hijacking gang, said in a telephone interview yesterday from Harardhare. (Bloomberg 11/21/2008)

India to chase pirates into Somali waters Finally armed with the green signal to undertake 'hot pursuit' of pirates even into the territorial waters of Somalia, India is now dispatching a much more powerful warship to the Gulf of Aden. Sources said a 6,900-tonne Delhi-class destroyer, the largest warship in Navy's combat fleet after aircraft carrier INS Viraat, will be leaving for the Gulf of Aden in the next few days. (Times of India, 11/21/2008)

Egypt hosts Arab piracy meeting Egypt has held a meeting of six Arab countries in an attempt to forge a joint strategy against piracy in the Gulf of Aden, which threatens the international trade route through Egypt's Suez Canal. The countries represented in the meeting on Thursday were those who share the Red Sea with Egypt - Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Jordan. (Aljazeera 11/20/2008)

'Toxic waste' behind Somali piracy Somali pirates have accused European firms of dumping toxic waste off the Somali coast and are demanding an $8m ransom for the return of a Ukranian ship they captured, saying the money will go towards cleaning up the waste. (Aljazeera 10/11/2008)

Hijacked Vessel or Pirate Mother Ship?

This image is from Google Earth, along the western coast of Somalia. Is this a hijacked vessel or a pirate mother ship? This vessel is located at 4.323255 N 48.001630 E. [click on image for close up view]

Intelligence Services & Security Solutions for counter-terrorism

Here is a collection of Intelligence and Security Services for counter-terrorism to prevent, deter and respond to hijacking events. If we have omitted someone, please add them to the list.

Dryad Maritime Intelligence Service Dryad is a commercial Intelligence company that provides reliable, accurate and accessible intelligence to mariners worldwide. We provide services to all maritime sectors at sea and ashore and have extensive experience in providing services to the Super Yacht, Cruise and Oil and Gas sectors in all parts of the world.

Anti-Piracy Maritime Security Solutions Formed in July 2008, APMSS is a trading style of NK888 Ltd group of companies. APMSS draws together and consolidates the very best people in the business in order to address the current needs and trends in the GOA and other areas of high risk for piracy.

MaritimeSecurity

Current Articles & News v.1

Here are links to current articles and new releases regarding the crisis of international hijacking by pirates (terrorists).

For A Price, Security Company Wards Off Pirates A former British army pilot recently launched a business called Anti-Piracy Maritime Security Solutions. For $30,000, Nick Davis will arrange a team of three private guards to travel on a boat, and scare away potential pirates. He has teams right now on seven ships in the Gulf of Aden. (NPR, 11/20/2008)

U.S. Admiral: Ships Must Do More To Combat Piracy Vice Adm. Bill Gortney, commander of the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, says even one of the most powerful conglomerations of ships in the world isn't enough to combat the pirates. "Where we are not is where you have these maritime criminals that we call pirates, [who] will eventually find a merchant ship that is taking no action, or ineffective actions, to prevent pirates from getting on board their vessels," he says. (NPR, 11/20/2008)


India 'sinks Somali pirate ship' An Indian navy warship has destroyed a suspected Somali pirate vessel after it came under attack in the Gulf of Aden. INS Tabar sank the pirate "mother ship" after it failed to stop for investigation and opened fire instead, an Indian navy statement said. (BBC, 11/19/2008)

Somalia attacks set to spur switch from Suez AP MOLLER-Maersk may be on the brink of ceasing to use the Suez Canal, instead choosing to reroute its ships via the Cape of Good Hope, thereby avoiding proximity to piracy-prone Somalia. A spokesman for Europe’s biggest shipowner told Lloyd’s List that a decision is expected shortly, possibly as early as tomorrow. The implications could be dramatic, both in terms of the resultant additional tonne-miles and increased transit times. Such a development would also be a bitter blow for Egypt, which depends on the Suez Canal as its second most important foreign currency earner after tourism. (Lloyd's List, 11/19/2008)

Somali pirates transform villages into boomtowns MOGADISHU, Somalia – Somalia's increasingly brazen pirates are building sprawling stone houses, cruising in luxury cars, marrying beautiful women, even hiring caterers to prepare Western-style food for their hostages. And in an impoverished country where every public institution has crumbled, they have become heroes in the steamy coastal dens they operate from because they are the only real business in town. "The pirates depend on us, and we benefit from them," said Sahra Sheik Dahir, a shop owner in Haradhere, the nearest village to where a hijacked Saudi Arabian supertanker carrying $100 million in crude was anchored Wednesday. These boomtowns are all the more shocking in light of Somalia's violence and poverty: Radical Islamists control most of the country's south, meting out lashings and stonings for accused criminals. There has been no effective central government in nearly 20 years, plunging this arid African country into chaos. But in northern coastal towns like Haradhere, Eyl and Bossaso, the pirate economy is thriving thanks to the money pouring in from pirate ransoms that have reached $30 million this year alone.(Yahoo News, 11/19/2008) [click on Google Earth map for closeup of Haradhere, Eyl and Boossaso]

Indian Navy destroys Somali pirate ship as hijackers demand $10m ransom for captured Saudi supertanker The Indian Navy has said that one of its warships in the Gulf of Aden has destroyed a pirate ship in the area. INS Tabar, an Indian frigate dispatched last month to the area to protect the country's merchant fleet, attacked the pirate 'mothership' when it refused to respond to warnings. Indian officers said they had seen pirates walking about on the large ship carrying rocket propelled grenade launchers.(DailyMail, 11/19/2008)

Somali pirates hijack Thai fishing boat, 16 crew NEW DELHI-Separate bands of pirates hijacked two ships and captured their crews, while yet another opened fire on an Indian navy ship before being driven off, clear signs that the brigands roaming the Gulf of Aden are becoming bolder and more violent, officials said Wednesday. A Thai ship with 16 crew members and an Iranian cargo vessel with a crew of 25 were hijacked Tuesday in the Gulf of Aden, where Somalia-based pirates appear to be attacking ships at will, said Noel Choong of the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center in Malaysia. The incidents raised to eight the number of ships hijacked this week alone. Since the beginning of the year, 39 ships have been hijacked in the Gulf of Aden, out of 95 attacked.(AP News-MyWay, 11/19/2008)

Pirates anchor hijacked supertanker off Somalia coast Saudi-owned crude oil carrier Sirius Star was captured by pirates 450 miles south-east of Mombasa, Kenya. The Sirius Star, which is fully loaded with crude oil, is understood to be at anchor close to a headland called Raas Cusbad, near Hobyo. The owner of the ship, Vela International Marine, said the 25 crew members on board were safe.(Guardian UK, 11/18/2008)

Pirate strikes off the African coast this year It is believed at least five Somali pirate gangs employing more than 1,000 gunmen are operating in the Gulf of Aden and off the coast of east Africa. Between July and September, there were 47 attacks off Somalia's coast, and 26 were successful. But the attack on the Sirius Star shows the reach of the pirates now extends far beyond Somali waters. (Guardian UK, 11/18/2008)

Dangerous Locations -Where are the Pirates?

Live Pirate Map International Maritime Bureau's (IMB's) Piracy Report Center

Horn of Africa

Gulf of Aden [click on Google Earth map for closeup of region.]






Putland Region
Puntland State of Somalia [click on Google Earth map for closeup of region]





Update: International Maritime Bureau (IMB) Intelligence sources revealed that there are now three suspicious vessels in the Gulf of Aden believed to be pirate mother vessels looking to attack ships with the intent to hijack. The description of the suspected trawlers - long white, Russian made stern trawlers with names "BURUM OCEAN or ARENA or ATHENA". One of the trawlers is believed to be operating at approximately 60 NM NE of Bossasso, Somalia in the Gulf of Aden. Also intelligence indicates a blue-colored tug operating in the same vicinity. The center has received information that the suspected pirate mother ships are at the following positions:

BLUE-COLOURED TUG: 1159N 05056E at 25 0500 UTC Aug 08
Fishing trawler BURUM OCEAN: 1411N 04951E at 25 0930 UTC Aug 08

Suspected Pirate Mother Vessels:
Burum Ocean




Burum Ocean







Arena or Athena

Pirates -Who are they?

The 3,025-km. long coastline of Somalia, particularly in the Somali regions of Somaliland and Puntland, (classified as the most dangerous territory in the world because of its lawlessness, widespread civil war and total anarchy, especially in and around the capital Mogadishu) hosts at least four distinct groups of pirates, says the ministry. These are organized according to tribal and clan backgrounds and are led by war lords, corrupt business men and even local authorities. Pirate groups are well organized and led from headquarters ashore. To be able to operate far out at sea they increasingly employ mother ships from which they launch small interceptor craft to attack merchant or fishing vessels. Typical pirate equipment includes communications (radios, satellite phone), radar, assault rifles, machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades.

Who are Somalia's pirates? A Monitor Q&A reveals who's behind the modern-day pirates, how they got so good at taking ships, and what's being done to stop them. (Christian Science Monitor, 11/21/2008)

Somalia's pirate kings DHOWS rest on a white sand beach in front of a few dozen ramshackle homes. A creek cuts inland, traced by a dirt road that runs to a craggy fishing settlement five kilometres away. Until recently Eyl was a remote and rundown Somali fishing outpost of 7000 people. Now, thanks to some spectacular ocean catches, it is a booming mini-town, awash with dollars and heavily armed young men, and boasting a new notoriety: piracy capital of the world. (The Age, 11/20/2008)

Somalia's Face of Modern Piracy Photogallery (Time/CNN, 11/25/2008)

Hawiye Clan (Wikipedia)

Pirates (BBC World Service, 03/03/2008)
Part I
Part II

Al-Shabaab
Wikipedia
Somalia's al Shabaab seize port near capital (Reuters 11/12/2008)
US State Department's Designation of Al-Shabaab


Piracy in Somalia

SPLA (Sudan Peoples Liberation Army)

Central Region Coast Guard

New brand of pirates lured by easy cash and girls They've made headlines around the world, collected millions of dollars in ransom, and terrorized the high seas. But despite their notoriety, little is known about the pirates who have been hijacking ships off the coast of Somalia for the past decade. The relatively lawless nature of Somali society, where a functioning federal government has been all but missing for more than a decade, has created a lack of knowledge about who is behind the spate of ship hijackings in recent months. (CTV, 11/22/2008)

Somali Pirates Tell Their Side: They Want Only Money In a 45-minute interview, Mr. Sugule spoke on everything from what the pirates wanted (“just money”) to why they were doing this (“to stop illegal fishing and dumping in our waters”) to what they had to eat on board (rice, meat, bread, spaghetti, “you know, normal human-being food”). He said that so far, in the eyes of the world, the pirates had been misunderstood. “We don’t consider ourselves sea bandits,” he said. “We consider sea bandits those who illegally fish in our seas and dump waste in our seas and carry weapons in our seas. We are simply patrolling our seas. Think of us like a coast guard.” (New York Times, 09/30/2008)

Q. & A. With a Pirate: “We Just Want the Money” Sugule Ali, the spokesman for the Somali pirates holding hostage the Faina, a Ukrainian freighter loaded with weapons, spoke to me by satellite telephone today from the bridge of the seized ship. (New York Times, 09/30/2008)

International Maritime Bureau (IMB)

This is a synopsis of the International Maritime Bureau, which monitors shipping crime.

ICC Commercial Crime Services (CCS) ICC Commercial Crime Services (CCS) is the anti-crime arm of the International Chamber of Commerce. Based in London, CCS is a membership organization tasked with combating all forms of commercial crime. The specialist divisions that comprise CCS offer a range of services dedicated to meeting the individual needs of the members. Together, they tackle all types of commercial crime; fraud in international trade, insurance fraud, financial instrument fraud, money laundering, shipping fraud and product counterfeiting. [There are excellent links and reports at this site]

International Maritime Bureau (Wikipedia)International Maritime Bureau . The ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB) is a specialized division of the International Chamber Of Commerce (ICC). The IMB is a non-profit making organization, established in 1981 to act as a focal point in the fight against all types of maritime crime and malpractice For over 25 years, the IMB has used industry knowledge, experience and access to a large number of well-placed contacts around the world to protect the integrity of international trade by seeking out fraud and malpractice.

List of Vessels Hijacked v.1

Here is a list of vessels hijacked by pirates.

Delight (Hong Kong) 11/18/2008, hijacked off Gulf of Aden






Sirius Star (Saudi Arabia) 11/18/2008, 420 nm. off coast of Somalia





Yasa Neslihan, (Turkey) 10/30/2008, Gulf of Aden




Wail, (Panama), 10/09/2008, between Socotra Island & Bosasso

MV Faina (Ukranian) 09/25/2008, off coast of Somalia.




MT Stolt Valor (India) 09/16/2008, off coast of Somalia





Al Mansoura (Egyptian) 09/04/2008


MV Amiya Scan (Netherlands) 05/25/2008, off coast of Somalia




Thor Star (Thailand) 08/15/2008, 100 nm. off coast of Yemen



Playa de Bakio (Spain) 04/20/2008





Le Ponant (France) 04/04/2008





Svitzer Korsakov (Denmark) 02/04/2008 northeast coast of Somalia

2005 Hijackings

Pirates hijack ship off Somalia The Maltese-registered ship, Pagania, was attacked late on Wednesday as it sailed from South Africa to Europe with a cargo of iron ore. The hijackers are reportedly demanding a $700,000 (£394,000) ransom for the release of the ship and its crew, all believed to be Ukrainian. More than 20 ships have been seized or attacked in the area since March. The International Maritime Bureau, which records such attacks, has recently advised ships "to keep as far away as possible from the Somali coast". A UN-chartered ship carrying food aid to tsunami victims in northern Somalia, the MV Semlow, was released this month, after being held by hijackers for 100 days. (BBC News, 10/21/2005)

Pirates hijack tsunami aid ship A ship carrying United Nations' food aid to Somali victims of the Indian Ocean tsunami has been hijacked. The freighter, the MV Semlow, was sailing from the Kenyan port of Mombasa to Bossaso in north-eastern Somalia when it was attacked by armed pirates. (BBC News, 06/30/2005)

2008 Hijackings

Hijacker Somali Pirates: We'll Fight to the Death Before Surrendering to U.S., Russia MOGADISHU, Somalia — A group of Somali pirates who have hijacked a tanker loaded with military supplies say they will fight to the death before giving in to Russian and U.S. authorities. The tense situation off the coast of Somalia began 11 days ago when the pirates took control of the Ukrainian vessel MV Faina. (FOX News, 10/06/2008)


Pirates attack 3 ships off Somalia Pirates hijacked three ships off the coast of Somalia on Thursday in the "worst number of attacks" in one day in many years, an international maritime watchdog said. "Four attacks in two days, ships being hijacked and crews being taken, and large ransoms being demanded is completely unacceptable," said Capt. Pottengal Mukudan of the International Maritime Bureau, which monitors shipping crime.(BBC News 08/22/2008)

Pirates hijack Thai ship off Somalia NAIROBI, Kenya - Pirates have hijacked a Thai cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden off the Somali coast, the Kenya Seafarers Association said Thursday. The ship, the MV Thor Star, was hijacked Tuesday with 28 Thai crew members on board, said Andrew Mwangura, a spokesman for the association, which acts on behalf of merchant vessels in the region. The Thai-flagged ship is owned by Bangkok-based Thoresen Thai Agencies. (CNN, 08/14/2008)

Pirates hijack Danish-owned ship off Somalia A Danish-owned tug boat with a British captain, an Irish engineer and four Russian crew members was seized off Somalia's northeastern coast and a ransom has been demanded, the ship owner and a Somali official said Monday. All crew members on the Svitzer Korsakov, a Russian-built ship, were believed to be unharmed. (Associated Press, 02/04/2008)

November 18, 2008

Today in the news there are reports of three incidents of international hijacking and terrorism. They include cargo ships from Denmark, Saudui Arabia and Hong Kong. Here are links to the news reports.

[click on Google Earth map for close up view]

Hong Kong grain ship hijacked by pirates, A Hong Kong cargo ship loaded with wheat bound for Iran has been hijacked by pirates in the Gulf of Aden. There were 25 crew members on board, none of them from Hong Kong or the Chinese mainland. The ship was carrying 36,000 tonnes of wheat to Iran's Bandar Abbas port. (Reuters 11/18/2008)

Danish oil ship briefly seized off Nigeria, A Danish shipping group says one of its vessels has been released after being hijacked for nearly 30 hours in Nigeria's southern oil region. Thor Shipping executive Thomas Mikkelsen says the crew aboard the Thor Galaxy was not harmed. He says the ship was headed to Warri in southern Nigeria with oil exploration equipment when armed men boarded the ship Sunday. The ship and its Filipino crew were released about 30 hours later.(Yahoo News 11/18/2008)

New ship seized in Gulf of Aden Vela International, owner of the oil tanker called Sirus Star, said on Tuesday that they had established contact with the pirates and were seeking to ensure the safety of the 25-man crew. The pirates seized control of the tanker on Saturday, 450 nautical miles south-east of the Kenyan Indian Ocean port of Mombasa. The attack marked a significant escalation in the scope of banditry in the region. (Financial Times, 11/18/2008)

Saudis label pirates 'terrorists' after $100m loss The Saudi Royal Family condemned Somali pirates as terrorists today after losing $100 million worth of oil in an audacious heist that saw bandits seize a supertanker in the Arabian Sea. The Sirius Star, which was carrying two million barrels of oil, a quarter of the Kingdom's daily output, was captured with its multi-national crew, including two Britons, 450 miles off the coast of Kenya on Sunday. The hijack was the biggest ever act of piracy in the perilous shipping lanes off the east coast of Africa. Vela International, the ship’s owners, said today that the crew were safe and that their response team was awaiting further contact with the gang. (Financial Times, 11/18/2008)

Hijacked Supertanker Anchors Off Somalia Although the supertanker’s exact location near the Somali coast was not clear, in the past most pirates have brought hijacked vessels to a 230-mile stretch of coastline between Eyl in the north to the Harardhere region to the south, Commander Campbell said in a telephone interview. (New York Times, 11/18/2008)