Somalia Piracy Update (NATO)

The following slides are from NATO's Shipping Centre website. [click on slide image for larger view]

January 21, 2009

Current Articles & News v.8

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

10 ships, 179 crew held by Somali pirates The International Maritime Bureau says 166 crew on nine hijacked ships are still being held off the coast of Somalia, not including the German tanker seized Thursday, the MV Longchamp and its 13-man crew.

The other ships include:
(1) Ukrainian cargo ship MV Faina, seized in September. The pirates had originally asked for $20 million for the ship, which is laden with 33 tanks and other heavy weapons. (2) Turkish tanker Karagol, seized in November carrying 4,500 tons of chemicals and 14 Turkish personnel. (3) Chinese fishing vessel Tianyu No. 8, seized in mid-November. (4) Bulk carrier African Sanderling and its 21 Filipino crewmen, seized in October. (5) Egyptian cargo ship Blue Star with 28 crew, seized in January.
(AP International, 01/29/2009)

Kenya agrees to prosecute U.S.-held pirates: Pentagon Kenya has agreed to prosecute Somali pirates captured by the U.S. Navy, allowing U.S. forces to begin taking piracy suspects into custody on the high seas, the Pentagon said on Thursday. U.S. and Kenyan officials signed a bilateral agreement on January 16 that calls for suspects to be tried in Kenyan courts, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said. The pact removes a major obstacle that prevented the U.S. Navy from capturing pirates. (Reuters, 01/29/2009)

Somali pirates hijack German gas tanker, 13 crew Somali pirates hijacked a German tanker loaded with liquefied petroleum gas Thursday off the Horn of Africa. The ship's 13-man crew was reported safe, even though gunshots were heard over the ship's radio. The MV Longchamp is the third ship captured by pirates this month in the Gulf of Aden. (Yahoo News, 01/29/2009)

Sailor tells of the moment pirates captured the Sirius Star A Scottish sailor who was held hostage for two months on the oil tanker, the Sirius Star, has spoken for the first time about the "beautiful morning" at sea that was ruined by heavily armed pirates. (Telegraph UK, 01/29/2009)

NATO's Somalia Piracy Update

The following slides are from NATO's Shipping Centre website. [click on slide image for larger view]

January 12, 2009








January 7, 2009







December 11, 2008









November 21, 2008








November 18, 2008








October 15, 2008

7 Essays of Africa Piracy Annals

Here are seven very comprehensive sequential essays, written by Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis, filled with good data, representing an academic perspective of the hijacking and terrorism off the coast of Somalia.

"Around the Year Change 2008–2009 in Somalia/Horn of Africa Piracy Annals." (American Chronicle, 01/05-06/2009)
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7

GeoEye IKONOS High-Resolution Satellite Sensor

Somali Pirates Hijacked Tanker, M/V Sirius Star, Located by GeoEye IKONOS High-Resolution Satellite Sensor GeoEye IKONOS Satellite collects high-resolution (<1m) image on November 20th, 2008 of the hijacked supertanker Sirius Star owned by ARAMCO of Saudi Arabia. The vessel is located 5 miles off the Somalia coast at WGS-84 ECEF Latitude 4.595? North and Longitude 48.085? East. The IKONOS Satellite Image was acquired from 423 miles in space while the IKONOS satellite was moving from north to south over the East coast of Africa at 17,000 mph. (4 miles per second).

Current Articles & News v.7

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

54 Filipino seamen still in Somali pirates' hands Fifty-four Filipino seamen remain in the hands of their ransom-seeking Somali captors after 36 of their colleagues were freed over the weekend, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said on Monday. The remaining sailors are crew members of the four ships that are still in the custody of the pirates in Somalia, namely: the MTAfrican Sanderling (hijacked on Oct. 15), MT Stolt Strength (hijacked on Nov. 11), Tianyu No. 8 (hijacked on Nov. 14), and the MV Chemstar Venus (hijacked on Nov. 16). (ChinaView, 01/12/2009)

Saudi tanker (Sirius Star) 'freed off Somalia' A Saudi supertanker that was captured by Somali pirates in November carrying two million barrels of oil has been released, reports quoting pirates say. A negotiator for the pirates told the BBC a $3m (£1.95m) ransom was paid. A small plane was seen apparently dropping the ransom by parachute onto the tanker. Coalition naval forces in Bahrain said it appeared that the pirates on the Sirius Star had received a ransom payment in a container parachuted from a plane. Reuters later reported that five of the pirates making off with the ransom money had drowned after their boat was hit by high seas. (BBC, 01/09/2009)

Hostages freed from pirates off Somalia, Nigeria Pirates freed 20 hostages aboard a Turkish freighter commandeered off the Somali coast, as nine captives on a French boat were released off southern Nigeria, the boat owners said Wednesday. The Yasa Holding Co. said pirates freed the Yasa Neslihan freighter Tuesday after paying a ransom. The Turkish ship was seized Oct. 29 in the Gulf of Aden, which connects the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean near Somalia. (AP, 01/07/2009)