U.S. Crew in Control of Hijacked Ship; Captain Held (Update3)
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By Anthony Capaccio and Gregory Viscusi
April 8 (Bloomberg) -- The American crew of a container ship hijacked off Somalia’s coast regained control of the vessel from pirates, who still hold the captain hostage in a lifeboat, a U.S. official said.
A navy destroyer has arrived in the area about 500 miles (800 kilometers) south of the Gulf of Aden where the U.S.- flagged Maersk Alabama was attacked, CNN reported, citing an unidentified defense official.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the U.S. was “deeply concerned” about the incident and called on the world to “come together to end the scourge of piracy.”
Pirates in the region have taken more ships in the past four days than in the first three months of the year and are operating outside their usual hunting grounds in the Gulf of Aden. The hijacking of the Maersk Alabama, owned by Copenhagen- based A.P. Moeller-Maersk A/S and crewed by 20 Americans, was the first seizure of a U.S.-flagged vessel since a Maritime Protection Corridor was set up in the region in August, according to the U.S. Navy.
The crew released one of the four pirates in what may have been a botched prisoner exchange and is negotiating with the hijackers to release the captain, a man who identified himself as Ken Quinn, the ship’s second mate, told CNN in a broadcast phone interview.
Obama Administration
The Obama administration is “closely monitoring” the situation, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said. “Our top priority is the personal safety of the crew members on board.”
The vessel was carrying 401 containers of food and cargo bound for Mombassa in Kenya, John Reinhart, chief executive officer of Maersk Line Ltd., the company’s U.S. unit, said in a press conference at the ship’s home port in Norfolk, Virginia. “It was all relief cargo.”
The company spoke earlier today with the crew and was told members are safe, Reinhart said.
The incident may put pressure on President Barack Obama to boost the naval presence in the pirate-infested waters.
“This attack hits home and will change the political dynamic surrounding Somalia piracy in Washington because there will be domestic political pressure on the administration to do something,” said Philippe de Pontet of the Eurasia Group, a New York-based political risk analysis firm.
“The U.S. and its European partners have already responded with fairly robust maritime assets, but this will raise questions about whether the measures to date are sufficient,” he said.
Threat of Piracy
Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said today he plans to hold hearings on the threat of piracy “before the next fire drill becomes an international incident with big implications.”
The Alabama is part of the U.S. Maritime Security Program, a reserve fleet of commercial vessels that can be mobilized to haul military cargos, said Susan Clark, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Department’s Maritime Administration, which oversees the program. Such ships must carry American crews.
Pirates in recent days have hijacked a British-owned general cargo ship, a French yacht, a German container ship, a Taiwanese trawler and a Yemeni tugboat.
Most of those attacks have been to the south of the Gulf of Aden, where about 25 warships from the European Union, the U.S., Turkey, Russia, India and China have concentrated efforts to protect one of the world’s most traveled trade routes and where most attacks have previously occurred.
World Trade
About one-tenth of world trade passes through the Gulf of Aden, the route for vessels using the Suez Canal. While fewer commercial ships ply the east coast of Somalia, there are also fewer warships to deter attacks.
The area of potential Somali pirate attacks is equal to the Mediterranean and Red Seas combined, or to four times France or Texas.
A total of 165 ships were attacked last year with 43 vessels hijacked, peaking at 10 in November alone. The pirates still hold 16 ships with about 200 crew members.
In every case except one, ships were released in exchange for a ransom, and the crews were unharmed.
The only ship to be freed by force was a French yacht liberated by commandos in September with the death of one pirate and the capture of six others.
German Ship
On April 4, pirates struck 1,000 miles south of the Gulf of Aden, seizing the 20,000 ton German-flagged container ship Hansa Stavanger between the Seychelles and the Kenyan coast. The ship, managed by Leonhardt and Blumberg, has a crew of 24 and was taken 400 miles from shore.
A Taiwanese vessel, identified as the MV Win Far 161, was seized near the Seychelles with 30 on board.
A French yacht was also seized two days ago along the east coast of Somalia as it made its way to Zanzibar, a tourist and spice island off the coast of Tanzania.
The EU’s anti-piracy fleet is reconsidering where to position its five warships, a spokesman said yesterday. Meanwhile, it’s using patrol planes to search out pirate ships and warn merchant vessels of areas to avoid, he said.
The U.S. Navy said yesterday that merchant ships should take steps to defend themselves, citing recent attacks that have been fought off using barbed wire, fire hoses or increasing speed to create a wake.
“What we have is a policy of prevention,” Reinhart said. “As merchant vessels we do not carry arms.”
To contact the reporters on this story: Anthony Capaccio in Washington at [email protected]; Gregory Viscusi in Paris at [email protected]
Last Updated: April 8, 2009 20:51 EDT
Share | Email | Print | A A A
By Anthony Capaccio and Gregory Viscusi
April 8 (Bloomberg) -- The American crew of a container ship hijacked off Somalia’s coast regained control of the vessel from pirates, who still hold the captain hostage in a lifeboat, a U.S. official said.
A navy destroyer has arrived in the area about 500 miles (800 kilometers) south of the Gulf of Aden where the U.S.- flagged Maersk Alabama was attacked, CNN reported, citing an unidentified defense official.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the U.S. was “deeply concerned” about the incident and called on the world to “come together to end the scourge of piracy.”
Pirates in the region have taken more ships in the past four days than in the first three months of the year and are operating outside their usual hunting grounds in the Gulf of Aden. The hijacking of the Maersk Alabama, owned by Copenhagen- based A.P. Moeller-Maersk A/S and crewed by 20 Americans, was the first seizure of a U.S.-flagged vessel since a Maritime Protection Corridor was set up in the region in August, according to the U.S. Navy.
The crew released one of the four pirates in what may have been a botched prisoner exchange and is negotiating with the hijackers to release the captain, a man who identified himself as Ken Quinn, the ship’s second mate, told CNN in a broadcast phone interview.
Obama Administration
The Obama administration is “closely monitoring” the situation, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said. “Our top priority is the personal safety of the crew members on board.”
The vessel was carrying 401 containers of food and cargo bound for Mombassa in Kenya, John Reinhart, chief executive officer of Maersk Line Ltd., the company’s U.S. unit, said in a press conference at the ship’s home port in Norfolk, Virginia. “It was all relief cargo.”
The company spoke earlier today with the crew and was told members are safe, Reinhart said.
The incident may put pressure on President Barack Obama to boost the naval presence in the pirate-infested waters.
“This attack hits home and will change the political dynamic surrounding Somalia piracy in Washington because there will be domestic political pressure on the administration to do something,” said Philippe de Pontet of the Eurasia Group, a New York-based political risk analysis firm.
“The U.S. and its European partners have already responded with fairly robust maritime assets, but this will raise questions about whether the measures to date are sufficient,” he said.
Threat of Piracy
Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said today he plans to hold hearings on the threat of piracy “before the next fire drill becomes an international incident with big implications.”
The Alabama is part of the U.S. Maritime Security Program, a reserve fleet of commercial vessels that can be mobilized to haul military cargos, said Susan Clark, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Department’s Maritime Administration, which oversees the program. Such ships must carry American crews.
Pirates in recent days have hijacked a British-owned general cargo ship, a French yacht, a German container ship, a Taiwanese trawler and a Yemeni tugboat.
Most of those attacks have been to the south of the Gulf of Aden, where about 25 warships from the European Union, the U.S., Turkey, Russia, India and China have concentrated efforts to protect one of the world’s most traveled trade routes and where most attacks have previously occurred.
World Trade
About one-tenth of world trade passes through the Gulf of Aden, the route for vessels using the Suez Canal. While fewer commercial ships ply the east coast of Somalia, there are also fewer warships to deter attacks.
The area of potential Somali pirate attacks is equal to the Mediterranean and Red Seas combined, or to four times France or Texas.
A total of 165 ships were attacked last year with 43 vessels hijacked, peaking at 10 in November alone. The pirates still hold 16 ships with about 200 crew members.
In every case except one, ships were released in exchange for a ransom, and the crews were unharmed.
The only ship to be freed by force was a French yacht liberated by commandos in September with the death of one pirate and the capture of six others.
German Ship
On April 4, pirates struck 1,000 miles south of the Gulf of Aden, seizing the 20,000 ton German-flagged container ship Hansa Stavanger between the Seychelles and the Kenyan coast. The ship, managed by Leonhardt and Blumberg, has a crew of 24 and was taken 400 miles from shore.
A Taiwanese vessel, identified as the MV Win Far 161, was seized near the Seychelles with 30 on board.
A French yacht was also seized two days ago along the east coast of Somalia as it made its way to Zanzibar, a tourist and spice island off the coast of Tanzania.
The EU’s anti-piracy fleet is reconsidering where to position its five warships, a spokesman said yesterday. Meanwhile, it’s using patrol planes to search out pirate ships and warn merchant vessels of areas to avoid, he said.
The U.S. Navy said yesterday that merchant ships should take steps to defend themselves, citing recent attacks that have been fought off using barbed wire, fire hoses or increasing speed to create a wake.
“What we have is a policy of prevention,” Reinhart said. “As merchant vessels we do not carry arms.”
To contact the reporters on this story: Anthony Capaccio in Washington at [email protected]; Gregory Viscusi in Paris at [email protected]
Last Updated: April 8, 2009 20:51 EDT
