Navy Vessel Nears Hijacked Ship
Military.com
Associated Press February 27, 2007
MOGADISHU, Somalia - A U.S. military vessel and three Somali police speedboats headed Monday toward a U.N.-chartered cargo ship that was hijacked by pirates after delivering food aid to northeastern Somalia, a senior police official said.
Police boats were within sight of the MV Rozen "but we asked them to stop going further because our biggest concern is the safety of the crew of 12 on board," said Col. Abdi Ali Hagaafe, police chief of Somalia's Bari region.
He said the Somali government had asked the U.S. Navy for help, and "they told us they have started to move towards the ship."
Lt. Denise Garcia, of the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command based in Bahrain, confirmed that U.S. forces were in the area and monitoring the situation.
Somali pirates boarded the cargo ship Sunday and took the crew hostage, officials said. It was the third time since 2005 that a U.N.-chartered vessel was hijacked off Somalia's coast.
The MV Rozen was contracted by the U.N.'s World Food Program to deliver food aid to Somalia, where around 1 million people are suffering from a drought that hit the region last year.
The 1,880-mile coast of Somalia, which has had no effective government since warlords ousted a dictatorship in 1991 and then turned on each other, has become extremely dangerous for ships.
Somali pirates are trained fighters, often dressed in military fatigues, using speedboats equipped with satellite phones and Global Positioning System equipment. They are typically armed with automatic weapons, anti-tank rocket launchers and various types of grenades, according to the U.N. Monitoring Group on Somalia.
The bandits target both passenger and cargo vessels for ransom or loot, using the money to buy weapons.
Those pirates are gonna be hating life if there is a SEAL TEAM on board that Vessel.
Sneaky Bastards they are
Associated Press February 27, 2007
MOGADISHU, Somalia - A U.S. military vessel and three Somali police speedboats headed Monday toward a U.N.-chartered cargo ship that was hijacked by pirates after delivering food aid to northeastern Somalia, a senior police official said.
Police boats were within sight of the MV Rozen "but we asked them to stop going further because our biggest concern is the safety of the crew of 12 on board," said Col. Abdi Ali Hagaafe, police chief of Somalia's Bari region.
He said the Somali government had asked the U.S. Navy for help, and "they told us they have started to move towards the ship."
Lt. Denise Garcia, of the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command based in Bahrain, confirmed that U.S. forces were in the area and monitoring the situation.
Somali pirates boarded the cargo ship Sunday and took the crew hostage, officials said. It was the third time since 2005 that a U.N.-chartered vessel was hijacked off Somalia's coast.
The MV Rozen was contracted by the U.N.'s World Food Program to deliver food aid to Somalia, where around 1 million people are suffering from a drought that hit the region last year.
The 1,880-mile coast of Somalia, which has had no effective government since warlords ousted a dictatorship in 1991 and then turned on each other, has become extremely dangerous for ships.
Somali pirates are trained fighters, often dressed in military fatigues, using speedboats equipped with satellite phones and Global Positioning System equipment. They are typically armed with automatic weapons, anti-tank rocket launchers and various types of grenades, according to the U.N. Monitoring Group on Somalia.
The bandits target both passenger and cargo vessels for ransom or loot, using the money to buy weapons.
Those pirates are gonna be hating life if there is a SEAL TEAM on board that Vessel.
Sneaky Bastards they are
posted by Gary | 6:41 AM
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