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Headlines : "War on Terror"U.S. Navy in 'piracy' clash off Somalia
According to maritime authorities, Somalia is a piracy hotspot, with some 37 incidents in the past year. U.S. private contractor Topcat Marine were awarded a commission to take over Somali coastguard duties in November 2005, ostensibly to combat this piracy (although the Somali government that awarded the contract does not yet exist in fact).
No deaths were recorded in 2005 due to piracy in Somalia. Hostages were taken but have all been released unharmed (and were well fed when captive).
A group of piracy suspects captured by the U.S. are on trial in Kenya where they maintain that they were “illegally abducted by the US while fishing.”
Now, the U.S. Navy has killed at least one sailor/pirate the piracy narrative is being intensified. This is an area to watch as the U.S. try to exert control over the shipping lanes off eastern Africa.
[Posted By Szamko]Republished from BBC News
The US Navy says two of its warships have returned fire on a group of suspected pirates off the Somali coast, killing one person and wounding five.
The incident happened early on Saturday as the ships were conducting maritime security operations, said a statement by the US Naval Forces Central Command.
The ships spotted a suspect vessel, which opened fire on them, it said.
Hijackings and piracy have recently surged off Somalia – which has had no central government since 1991.
The navy statement said the two warships – the USS Cape St George, a guided missile cruiser, and the USS Gonzalez, a guided missile destroyer – were conducting maritime security operations about 25 nautical miles off the Somali coast when they spotted a suspect vessel towing two smaller skiffs.
The Gonzalez sent a team to board the vessel and noticed that a group of suspected pirates was brandishing what appeared to be rocket-propelled grenades.
According to the statement, the suspected pirates then opened fire on the navy ships, which returned fire with mounted machine guns in self-defence.
One suspected pirate was killed and a fire started on board the vessel.
Weapons seized
The navy said it detained 12 suspects and confiscated a rocket-propelled grenade launcher and automatic weapons.
It…
Posted by Szamko
Just tries to tell the truth.
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Posted by ZenSwashbuckler on Sunday, November 27th 2005 - from Somalia with Love
Posted by Szamko on Saturday, November 26th 2005 - a Somalian sandwich?
Posted by Szamko on Thursday, December 8th 2005
Somalia is a halfway between the poppy fields of Asia and the shoot up alleys of Europe and North America. Smuggle one thing? Smuggle another. Humans, Arms, what have you. Porous borders like you would not believe in the Sahara Desert. I should think RPGs were the very least of what those guys got handy. Poor they ain’t.
Everybody knows this. Why would someone send out a press release? Something’s up. Think Chess baby.
Alfred McCoy’s the guy to read, if you’re interested in CIA Complicity in the Global Drug Trade and holy cow, will you look at that – he’s got a new book out :
A Question of Torture : CIA Interrogation, from the Cold War to the War on Terror