NAIROBI, Kenya, Sept. 29, 2008
U.S. Copters Buzz Hijacked Arms Shipment
Officials Fear Weapons On Ship Seized By Somali Pirates Could End Up In Hands Of Militants
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Photo
In this picture released by U.S. Navy, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2008, Somali pirates in small boats are seen alongside the hijacked "Faina". The captain of a hijacked Ukrainian ship off the coast of Somalia says one crew member has died and he can see a U.S. ship about a mile from his freighter. (AP PHOTO)
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Somalia
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Thursday's seizure of the MV Faina off Somalia, a failed state seen as a key battleground in the war on terrorism, could bring dangerous effects across the Horn of Africa and the Gulf of Aden, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.
Piracy has become a lucrative criminal racket in impoverished Somalia, bringing in millions of dollars in ransom.
The pirates aboard the blue-and-white Ukrainian-operated freighter are demanding $20 million to release the ship, its 21 crew members, one of whom has died of an apparent heart attack, and its cargo of T-72 tanks, rifles and ammunition.
The ship, now anchored off Somalia's coast near the central town of Hobyo, apparently was destined for Sudan when armed pirates overtook it, likely from a speedboat, and climbed up the side of the ship.
"We maintain a vigilant watch over the ship and we will remain on station while negotiations between the pirates and the shipping company are going on," Lt. Nathan Christensen, a deputy spokesman for the U.S. Navy's Bahrain-based 5th Fleet, told The Associated Press.
Although the pirates have not been allowed to take anything off the Faina, they have been allowed to resupply, one U.S. official said when asked if those aboard needed anything such as food. The official declined to comment on whether the negotiations between the pirates and the shipping company are being monitored.
U.S. Navy destroyers and cruisers have been deployed within 10 miles of the hijacked vessel and helicopters were circling overhead because of "great concern" over the possibility of the cargo falling "into the wrong hands," Christensen said. At one point on Sunday, the captain of the Faina said a warship was about two miles away.
"Our goal is to ensure the safety of the crew, to not allow off-loading of dangerous cargo and to make certain Faina can return to legitimate shipping," said Rear Adm. Kendall Card, commander of the task force monitoring the ship.
Although analysts say the pirates will likely be unable to unload the tanks, the other military hardware or a huge ransom could exacerbate the two-decade-old civil war in a country where nearly every building is pockmarked with bullet holes and all major civil institutions have crumbled.
The U.S. fears the armaments may end up with al Qaeda-linked Islamic insurgents who have been fighting the shaky, U.N.-backed Somali transitional government since late 2006, when they were driven out after six months in power. More than 9,000 people have been killed in the Iraq-style insurgency, most of them civilians.
Mark Bellamy, senior fellow in the Africa program at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the pirates "are more interested in the money than disposing of the cargo."
"There's theoretically a possibility these weapons can fall into the wrong hands, but what is al Qaeda going to do with tanks in Somalia?" he said.
Christensen said the arms shipment was destined for Sudan - not Kenya, which had been claiming to be the arms' destination. "We are aware that the actual cargo was intended for Sudan, not Kenya," he said.
The 5th Fleet said the ship was headed for the Kenyan port of Mombasa, but that "additional reports state the cargo was intended for Sudan."
U.N. officials said there is no blanket arms embargo on Sudan's government, but any movement of military equipment and supplies into the Darfur region would violate a U.N. arms embargo if it were not first requested by the government and approved by the Security Council's Sudan sanctions committee.
The United States has expressed opposition to all arms transfers to Sudan, which it considers a state sponsor of terrorism. U.S. officials also have warned that the transfer of lethal military equipment to state sponsors of terrorism could lead to sanctions under U.S. law.
A Western diplomat in Nairobi, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to talk to the media, said the shipment was destined for autonomous southern Sudan - not Darfur - and did not violate the embargo.
Bellamy said it was not illegal to send weapons to the north or south Sudanese governments.
"There are lots of ways that weapons can get into Sudan, and this happens to be one boatload," Bellamy said. "The bigger thing is this continuing problem of piracy. It's been escalating for three years and they're becoming more brazen and emboldened. They're being paid and they then turn around and step up activities."
Jervasio Okot, spokesman for southern Sudan's mission to Kenya, said officials there were "surprised" to hear reports that the tanks and arms were destined for their region.
"Our government has no contract for the importation of arms with the Russian or Ukrainian governments," Okot said.
U.S. intelligence reports said the cargo's ultimate destination was Sudan and that Kenya was only a transit point, said a Western official in Washington who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was discussing classified material.
Ukrainian Defense Ministry spokesman Valentyn Mandriyevsky said the ministry was not participating in the arms trade and didn't know where the cargo was bound. A spokesman for Ukraine's arms trader, Ukrspetexport, would not comment.
The 5th Fleet said the Faina is owned and operated by Kaalbye Shipping Ukraine. A woman who answered phone at the Odessa-based shipping company and declined to identify herself said the company was not involved with the Faina.
Ukrainian and Russian media have said the Faina is operated by Tomex Team, a company based in Odessa. Its representatives have repeatedly declined to comment.
A Russian-based registry indicates the ship, sailing under a Belize flag, is also owned by Tomex Team. It lists the owner as Waterlux AG, with a Panama address but the Odessa phone number of Tomex Team, which it indicates is a subsidiary.
Russia dispatched a warship to the area, and it will take about a week to get there. The Neustrashnimy, or Intrepid, was in the Atlantic near the English Channel on Monday and will have to go through the Strait of Gibraltar, the Mediterranean and the Suez Canal to get to the Somali coast, said Capt. Igor Dygalo, a spokesman for the Russian navy.
Christensen said the U.S. Navy maintains "standard bridge-to-bridge communication" with Faina's crew via radio, but stressed that they are not taking part in or facilitating any negotiations.
The 21-member crew was from Ukraine, Russia and Latvia. A Latvian Foreign Ministry spokesman said one man from Latvia was a "non-citizen," a term authorities typically refer to ethnic Russians who have not obtained Latvian citizenship.
There have been 24 reported attacks in Somalia this year, according to the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center. In June, the U.N. Security Council voted to allow international warships to enter Somali waters to combat the problem, but its 1,880-mile coastline - the longest in Africa - remains virtually unpoliced.
Nick Brown, the editor of Jane's International Defense Review, said it was unlikely the pirates would be able to use the tanks without specialized training and mechanics.
Mogadishu's arms markets are teeming with heavy weapons - including rocket-propelled grenades, AK-47s and mortars.
© MMVIII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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See all 76 CommentsLOL.... I''m glad to see a healthy sense of humour!
Posted by Xlib at 10:45 AM : Sep 29, 2008
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My condolences for your loss. October''s Mogo-1 was a disaster and the Clinton response was reprehensible. But the men who died at the hands of these thugs didn''t die for Republicans. Or Democrats. They answered a call for their Country. The worst thing we could do is turn that country and its military over to a party whose leadership answers every challenge, no matter how far away and how small, with a military bugle "to arms." When all we have is a hammer, every problem seems to require a hammer for a solution. A fist isn''t always the answer, is it? It wasn''t the answer in Mogo-1. And we pay and pay and pay for Clinton''s tool selection. (pun)
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And you say these T72 tanks were headed for Kenya?
Tsk, tsk. Poor Robert Mugabe will have to repurchase his toys with the insurance settlement, because this cargo is very, very fragile and subject to water damage.
You can imagine Mugabe''s anguish when his troops must face unarmed demonstrators without the protection of T72 tanks, flamethrowers and rocket and grenade launchers.
Perhaps this is occasion to salute Somali "pirates" as the free-lance, high-seas entrepreneurs they are.
Here''''s some fuel for you lefties. I am a conservative woman and have been for the past 15 years. My take on this, Somolia should have been blow off the face of the earth (if I may take a phrase from the president nut case of Iran)when our military was drug through the streets for the world to see.
Posted by Xlib
Keep venting. You have no power and cannot commit mass murder on this scale. Which is just as well.
And what are the copters or US destroyer gonna do, sink the ship with all those Ukrainian tanks aboard? Ukraine is a BOB (Buddy Of Bush).
Personally, I doubt very many of this doped-up Somali warlords are connected to al Quaeda! They just want to do dope, have an easy life, and make a pile of money!
If it were me---I''d give these pirates two minutes to ''come about'' and proceed to a point 12 miles or so offshore! Then, all pirates should proceed to the bow of the ship on the port side and place their hands clearly visible on top of their heads! At which point, I''d board and arrest all of them!
If they didn''t obey these instructions, I''d strafe and missile fire their conning tower! If they continued to resist, I''d sink the vessel! The end of story---crisis OVER! Period.
We could use some good news.
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Posted by cdfoxtrot3 at 06:44 PM : Sep 29, 2008
+ report abuse
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because liberal morons like Bono and Geldof DEMANDS THAT Sudan''s debts be forgiven so they can buy weapons..
Blow somalia off the face of the earth?
Are you retarded?
So kill all the innocent women and children?
and the farmers and merchants who want NO PART of the tribal violence/ethnic cleansing?
Comments like yours give justification to others'' comments that neo-cons are sick in the head, glorifying death and destruction, just to save them the trouble of thinking for ten seconds.
You are as bad as the nazis, and you sicken me with your complete in-humanity..
Cant you understand that you are ill?
It''s people like you in Somalia (and other places) that bring about bad situations like this IN THE FIRST PLACE.
Don''t you understand that??
Naaaah, go crack open a beer and call Obama a Muslim terrorist, then check out the wrestling match on TV instead.
Sure beats having a soul, huh?
Let them live off what is on the ship and when they have run out they will come crawling. Let them resupply and they can hold out forever.. I hae come to the conclusion that there is more to this world porblems than meets the eyes, our governments can be this stupid surely... even children could do it better so there has to be some other reason for there stupidity.. It couldnt possibly a new world order could it.. Because democracy has up until now been doing so well for almost 200 years perhaps they have to deliberatly cause world problems so as the people themselves will say that we need a new system.. A one world government, after all we know that this is what they are pushing for, and how else could they bring all the people of the world together than to cause problems so as the people want a world government hoping that it will be able to stop all these problems... Sounds good, well I aure that is what I have read in some of the communistic articles, has anyone else read/heard this.
Posted by Gaye5 at 09:02 PM : Sep 29, 2008
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Yes, I too, thought that was a bit ODD! Probably most of the posters here were wondering about that, too!
If you really WANTED to stop these guys and END the situation, you shouldn''t be RESUPPLYING them!
It makes you wonder, doesn''t it?!
Posted by One_Texan at 09:02 PM : Sep 29, 2008
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True! But twenty million bucks in half a dozen small suitcases isn''t anything to snivel at, either!
If they''re not complete idiots, that would provide a lifetime of financial security!
I''m out of here.
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They''re fighting against other groups there I''m sure. A tank would be very valuable. But in the absence of war, a tank could be a hoot to drive around. The only thing better might be grabbing a freighter full of firetrucks.
I wonder if the pirates knew what the cargo was before they boarded.
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But if you wanted to save the crew, which is what makes this so complicated, you don''t want the pirates getting hungry and desperate and start shooting.
If you wanted to listen in on them, you would send supplies.
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That''s good detective work. We can now deduce that there is an even number of pirates. (takes two to drive each hook and ladder truck)
What did happen to those guys who took hostages in Egypt? I don''t get to listen to as much news as I''d like.
End this stupid cr*ap. We have tons of navy ships with plenty of fire power, and crews that need combat training. Might as well train with real blood.
Then it''s off to the Black Sea to monitor U.S. ships supplying Georgia.
Why is it that there is non stop world wide Muslim violence and the media only tells us sensored bits.
We hear from people living overseas, of many horrors in different parts of the world so why doesnt the media print it???..
IF, notice that I said "IF"!!! Muslims holy books were peaceful, (and indeed the first quarter of the quran is), then Muslims world wide and their clerics, leaders and Imams would be out there stopping these horrors, instead they preach to their people to hate us, not to be friends with us unless it is for the cause of Allah, plus when their numbers have grown enough to become a force and the time is right, and the weapons have become availiable to them they are to attack and kill the infidel to make all the world for Allah..
For goodness sake everyone, read the last three quarters of the quran and others of the Muslim holy books and see for yourselves just what they have in store for us.. Our politicians are to stupid to read them so we have to become aware of our future. If our politicians did read these books we would not be in this position now.
On Sunday Jesus is your answewr the other 6 days your a violent buch of holes
Posted by Jerryomara at 07:17 AM : Sep 30, 2008
Jerry,
I think you''re taking away a bit of an exaggerated impression here. What you are seeing here are a few emotional remarks from a few people. The reality is, most of us realize that you can''t just blow up the ship and be done with it.
What many of use *don''t* get is the idea that you can negotiate with these people and expect them to go away. The only way the piracy will end is if we don''t permit ourselves to become victims. The only solution that will work is to refuse to negotiate with the pirates and make it completely clear that piracy will neither profitable nor tolerated. If the only way to make those points is by killing the pirates, then a value judgment must be made. If the judgment is that course is unacceptable, then we must realize that lawlessness will be the norm and innocent people will die at the hands of the lawbreakers. Sadly, the choice is that black and white.
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