|
Maersk Line vessel repels pirates
2009/4/10
The American crew of a hijacked cargo ship off the shore of Somalia regained effective control of the vessel earlier in the week, but the pirates held the captain hostage on a lifeboat as a US Navy destroyer arrived on the scene, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The high-seas drama, unfolding a few hundred miles from the East African coastline in the Indian Ocean, ratchets up the stakes for US and international naval commanders seeking to counter a surge in attacks in piracy-wracked waters there.
The attack was the first on American sailors amid the current spate of piracy attacks in the region, and initially at least, the capture of a crew of 20 Americans posed a potential international hostage crisis.
Dozens of ships have been taken and held for large ransoms just since last fall. Though the ships generally are released and crews unharmed, talks can drag on for months.
The Maersk Alabama was carrying food aid to Kenya when it was captured. Except for the captain being held, all the ship''s crew members were reported safe with no injuries.
The attack took place 240 nautical miles southeast of a known Somalia pirate haven called Eyl. Small bands of pirates, operating from skiffs launched by larger motherships, have pushed attacks farther and farther offshore as warships from around the world descend on the region to combat the dramatic upswing in attacks against international shipping.
The Maersk Alabama was a relatively small container ship, making it an easier target than most that have hulls too high for pirates to gain access.
America''s once giant commercial shipping fleet diminished sharply in the decade after World War II, and a US-flagged cargo ship is now a rare sight on the high seas, but dozens of them still ply global waters. Washington contracts American-flagged ships to meet its logistical needs around the world, and Maersk Line is a major shipper for both the US military and the US government.
Maersk said in this case the vessel''s cargo was all food aid headed for the Kenyan port of Mombasa, for the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) and other aid agencies. The WFP in Kenya confirmed the agency had about 4,100 metric tonnes of corn soya blend aboard. The blend is used to combat malnutrition in children and mothers, and was destined for Somalia and Uganda. An additional 990 metric tonnes of vegetable oil was headed for refugees in Kenya.
Food-aid agencies in East Africa have recently complained about the region''s piracy menace. The threat of attacks has made ship owners reluctant to agree to take on routes in the region, forcing up costs for aid agencies and reducing deliveries.
|
2009/4/10