Somali Pirates: Hijacking and "Thwarting"

From the Tribune of India: India, China warships thwart pirate attack off Aden coast

The Indian Navy and China’s People’s Liberation Army (Navy) jointly

OS-35

saved a bulk carrier named OS-35 which came under attack by pirates. The 178-metre ship was attacked by pirates on Saturday night in the Arabian Sea. The INS Mumbai provided air cover to the distressed merchant vessel, while the PLA Navy ship Yulin sent in a team of 18 to sanitise the merchant ship.

Previous reports were that OS-35 had been hijacked see Reuters: Somali Pirates "Suspected" in Bulker Hijack

Somali pirates are suspected of hijacking a bulk carrier ship, the head of

INS Mumbai

a maritime security company said on Saturday, in the latest in a string of attacks after years of calm.

A security source working at the Puntland Marine Police Force said the vessel was Tuvalu-flagged and is known as OS35.

Info on OS-35 here

PLAN frigate of type involved

Copyrighted photo of OS-35 by Julian De Lucas from Vesselfinder.com.

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence's Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report 19 April - 18 May 2016

Office of Naval Intelligence:

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence's Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report 19 April - 18 May...

Stopping Gulf of Guinea Pirates: U.S. Navy and Local Navies Put Training to Use

USNS Spearhead (U.S. Navy photo)

Nice AP article about a serendipitous situation in which 4 navies joined to thwart some Gulf of Guinea pirates in "Training exercise off W. Africa becomes real-life navy drama"

Capt. Heidi Agle, the commodore, had been directing a training exercise against piracy with maritime agencies of Ghana when the hijacking provided a real-life lesson, she said in a telephone interview Friday from her base in Italy.

First word came from the French Embassy, which sent information to Agle's USNS Spearhead via Ghanaian officials and U.S. diplomats of a possible pirate ship loitering off Abidjan, Ivory Coast.

There, pirates seized the Dubai-owned MT Maximus, on lease to a South Korean company and carrying 4,700 tons of diesel fuel, on Feb. 11.

The Spearhead tracked down the hijacked Maximus, identified it and then monitored its

Area involved

progress for two days as it sailed from Ivorian into Ghanaian waters. Then Agle handed over to Ghana's Navy, which continued to shadow the ship until it entered the waters of Togo, when that country's navy took over.

Eventually, after the hijacked ship neared the waters of Sao Tome and Principe the Nigerian navy successfully assaulted the captured ship and took the ship back. One pirate died during the recapture.

The rescue was directed by Nigerian Rear Admiral Henry Babalola, who told the AP that it was made possible by a maritime agreement allowing Nigeria to patrol Sao Tome's waters.

"When we challenged them (the pirates), they said that they were in international waters" with the law of the sea on their side. But the agreement allowed the Nigerians to storm the ship after eight hours of attempted negotiations.

"International cooperation is the new mantra for maritime security," Babalola said. "We cannot go it alone."

Six pirates were captured and 18 crew members freed. Several pirates escaped with two crew members who remain hostages, Steffen said.

More about Spearhead here

Video: Cruisers and Pirates Don't Mix Well

gCaptain has a video up here with commentary.

Seems like an older video that first appeared on YouTube in 2012.

Really not much of mystery - looks like prospective pirates misidentified a potential target and took on the wrong ship. Some of them seemed to have paid a severe price for their error.

Here is the YouTube version:



Don't know the ship, but this is a video shot at night, looks like IR. Camera looks like it might be on an aircraft or perhaps on a ship some distance from the events depicted. It also appears the putative "pirates" fired first.

gCaptain get credit for the Tico class cruiser ID. Doesn't appear the cruiser was going very fast, so it may have been trolling for just such an attack.

Fighting Pirates: A Lawerly Debate

From MaritimeTV, a couple of maritime legal thinkers discuss Armed Guards on Vessels. From May, 2012, and it seems a little OBE but still worth watching.

Hat tip to: The Marine Advocate Online.

You can order Defending Against Pirates here for $75 (downloadable pdf) or as a more expensive hard copy.

You might also be interested in a book to which I contributed, 
Maritime Private Security
Market Responses to Piracy, Terrorism and Waterborne Security Risks in the 21st Century
Edited by Patrick Cullen and Claude Berube, available here or from Amazon here.

Somali Pirates: Counter-Piracy Action!

First, from the NYTimes, European Forces Strike Pirate Base in Somalia:

European Union forces on Tuesday attacked a Somali pirate base for the first time, using a combat helicopter to strafe several of the signature fiberglass skiffs that the pirates use to hijack ships.
***
Lt. Cmdr. Jacqueline Sherriff, a spokeswoman for the European Unions anti-piracy force, said that the European forces destroyed at least five skiffs that were still on land with small arms fire and that the attack lasted a couple of minutes. This is a fantastic opportunity,’’ she said. “What we want to do is make life more difficult for these guys.’’

No "boots on the ground" - but a necessary move to slow down the pirates. Now, pirate whining as reported by the AP at Somali pirate: EU airstrike destroyed equipment:

A burning pirate skiff from a previous counter-piracy event

A Somali pirate says an airstrike by the European Union naval force patrolling the Indian Ocean has destroyed speed boats, fuel deports and an arms store.

Bile Hussein, a pirate commander, said Tuesday the attack on Handulle village in the Mudug region will cause a setback to pirate operations. The village lies about 18 kilometers (11 miles) north of Haradheere town, a key pirate lair. There were no reports of deaths in the attack, Hussein said.

Oh, no! Not a "setback!"

Meanwhile, out at sea, Turkish forces took on an apparent pirate "mother ship" - as reported here:

Turkish commandos have arrested 14 pirates thought to be from Somalia off the coast of Oman and freed seven Yemeni sailors they were holding hostage, the army said on May 13. A helicopter of the frigate Giresun, which operates with NATO forces in the region, spotted the boat on May 11 around 190 nautical miles from the Omani coast, the army said in a statement on its website. Commandos stormed the boat and seized nine assault weapons, a rocket launcher and other materials, said the statement, which was accompanied by photographs showing the suspects with their arms in the air as the raid began.

More from Saturn5 over at his blog, Bosphorus Naval News (more photos at his site and here):

The S-70B Seahawk helicopter attached to TCG Giresun spotted the dhow at 14:50, 190 nautical miles off the coast of Yemen. The dhow acting as a mother ship was stopped by the helicopter and TCG Giresunarrived at the dhow and the naval special forces team boarded the dhow at 17:00. 14 Somali pirates were arrested and 7 Yemeni fisherman, the original crew of the dhow were freed by naval commandos.

Taking the fight to the pirates!

Well done to all involved!

Somali Pirates: Spawning Silly Concern Over Their Well-Being

A small boat full of? (not from this incident)

For a couple of days my "news feeds" have been full of this Bloomberg piece, "Shooting to Kill Pirates Risks Blackwater Moment on High Seas", which was spawned, in turn, by a video that I have refused to post because it seems to show armed guards on a ship blazing away at suspected pirate boats (and the suspected pirates in them) somewhere at sea.

My refusal to post the video is because the video takes everything out of context, being but a piece, I assume, of all the activity that led up to the action portrayed.

Assume that the ship had hired the guards to protect the ship, that in the course of that protection some suspicious boats began acting suspiciously like pirates and began to head in toward the protected vessel and that the suspected pirates in said boats were either waving weapons about or actually firing weapons in an attempt to force a boarding of the ship by the suspected pirates. Assume that the senior manager of the vessel, the Captain, was keenly aware of all these goings on and at some point, authorized the use of weapons to deter the apparent attack. Now, take a look at what the video does show - that, despite the gun fire coming from the vessel, the suspected pirate craft continued their approach to the ship, traveling at high speed, even to the point where a suspected pirate boat came alongside the ship in an apparent effort to allow boarding of the ship by some persons riding in the small boat. Further note that the apparent assault on the ship seemed to involve more than one small boat, and that as one boat was being engaged on one side of the ship, another boat was apparently making a run in on the ship on the other side.

So, if you are with me so far, it is not unreasonable to assume that the armed security guards were engaged in providing "self defense" for the ship as directed by the Captain in a situation where only the people on the scene had full knowledge of what they perceived to be a threat to their lives and their safety in an area known for its piracy.

Well, if you thought that way, you are not thinking of the safety of those poor gentlemen in the small boats - you were not properly concerned that, although the small boat operators could have simply turned around and driven their boats and themselves out of rifle range, the onus was somehow on the ship and its security team to "play nice." As set out in the Bloomberg piece:

Reckless gun use at sea could put the whole industry at risk of reputational damage, said Stephen Askins, a partner at the London-based law firm Ince and Co., who has negotiated with Somali pirates for the release of hostages. "You can't have a Blackwater out in the Indian Ocean," he said, referring to the 2007 incident in which Blackwater Worldwide security guards allegedly fired on and killed civilians in Baghdad. ***

What? No, with all due respect to Mr. Askins, it is not "reckless gun use at sea" unless you ignore all the other circumstances, as set out by the president of the private security company involved:

He said the incident on March 25 last year was the second attempt to hijack the Avocet in three days. After spotting rocket-propelled grenades on the first skiff, the guards feared for their lives. The shootings were justified and the guards acted responsibly, Rothrauff said, firing warnings before aiming at the boat.

So, not "wild, wild west" - and it is almost criminally silly to use this video fragment to raise doubt of the need for actions undertaken by men at sea in a tight spot.

As for the safety and well-being of the suspected pirates - well, as I said earlier, the men operating the boat had full control of the situation. They chose to drive in toward the ship, so spare us the bleeding heart comparisons to an incident in Iraq under much different circumstances.

UPDATE: One problem with the rule of law with these pirates is that seems to be mostly a one-way street, tying the hands of counter-piracy forces while letting pirates go free, as set out in The Guardian's Outgunned Somali pirates can hardly believe their luck:Few countries are willing to prosecute and most captives suspected of sea piracy are eventually released: 

Commanders estimate that for every pirate captured and sent for trial, another three or four are released. This year dozens of pirates have been put quietly back to shore, despite good evidence to support prosecution.

***

So, without fanfare, more and more of the suspected pirates are being freed, the incentive to hunt them is slightly diminished, and the Somali criminals can hardly believe their luck. "When I have told them [the pirates] that we are putting them back to shore they are more or less celebrating," said Commander Anders Friis, captain of the Absalon. "They are very, very happy."

Of course they are.

UPDATE2: Another note of concern sounded at the Christian Science Monitor's Does a military solution for Somali piracy work?:

Since 2008, Somali pirate gangs have launched more than 800 attacks on commercial ships, with 170 ships hijacked, and 3,400 sailors held for ransom. Shipping firms have paid more than $530 million on private security firms during that time period, and $160 million was paid out to pirate gangs last year alone.

That, clearly, is the reason Somali gangs get into the pirate business. Do a few well-armed security guards onboard commercial ships, or a few naval patrol ships deter those pirates from taking to the high seas? Some point to the dropping number of pirate attacks – from 45 attacks in 2010 to 24 in 2011 – as a sign that naval patrolling and private security may be working.

It's unclear just why pirate attacks have dropped. Private security firms credit their use of guns and razor wire, while the European Naval Force takes credit with their increased patrols. The truth may be more complex, and even proponents of military force admit that the battle is far from won.

Indeed, there is no evidence that pirates are either staying home, or that they are being more selective about which country’s ships to attack and which to avoid, based on that country’s past tactics against pirates.

The article concludes, as has been long asserted here, that any "solution" to the Somali pirate problem begins on the beaches of Somalia.

Somali Pirates: Rejected by Dutch Marines

Somali pirates do not press encounter as Dutch marines ward off pirate attack:

Dutch marines guarding a merchant ship have warded off an attack by pirates after it was accosted in the Arabian Sea south of Yemen, the Dutch defence ministry said Tuesday.

"Dutch marines warded off the attack when pirates approached the Flintstone", a ship that dumps rocks to protect oil and gas pipelines, at around 6:00 am (0500 GMT), it said in a statement.
***
"The marines tried in vain to stop the fast-moving skiff, occupied by six men armed with an assortment of weapons including a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG), by firing tracers as a warning," the ministry said.

After one of the men aimed the RPG at the ship, the marines fired on the skiff, which turned around and joined the larger fishing vessel.

"It's not excluded that there may have been casualties among the attackers," the ministry said.

Putting armed guards on merchants has slowed the pirates down.

Somali Pirates: Royal Navy Nabs 13 and Mothership (U.S. Navy gets assist)

BBC News reports Royal Navy captures 13 Somali pirates:

Royal Marines apprehending pirates on dhow

RFA Fort Victoria and a US Navy vessel intercepted the pirates' boat, which had refused to stop despite warning shots from a Royal Navy helicopter.

Royal Marines in speedboats approached the vessel and boarded it, capturing 13 pirates and seizing weapons.
***
This latest operation was carried out around dawn on Friday. Capt Shaun Jones RFA, commanding officer on RFA Fort Victoria, said: "To manoeuvre such a large ship at speed in close vicinity of a nimble dhow takes extreme concentration and skill; my team were never found wanting." Capt James Sladden, who commanded the Royal Marines boarding party, added: "The moment of going on board the dhow was tense as we knew there were pirates on board who had refused to stop despite our warning shots. "Through our weapon sights we could see there were about 13 pirates, mostly gathered in the area of the bridge. We quickly boarded and secured the vessel before mustering the pirates on the bow."

If they can't get to sea, they can't capture ships. Containment. See here, here and here and at the links therein. Perhaps this time . . .

Somali Pirates: Pirate Mothership "Disrupted"

Early report and not much in the way of details, but there is this from NATO Shipping Center Daily Piracy Update:

The M/V LIQUID VELVET, the previously pirated vessel that may have been used as a mothership, was disrupted by naval Counter Piracy forces in the evening of 10 January. This mothership is no longer considered a threat to merchant shipping.

RN Lynx helicopter

I expect more details will be forthcoming. Should be interesting reading. UPDATE: Looks like a blocking move by a Royal Navy force as set out here:

RFA Fort Victoria

Fort Victoria, which is operating as part of Nato’s Operation Ocean Shield in the Indian Ocean, cut off the vessel’s progress when it was 90 miles from the coastline and forced it to return to Somalia. Fort Victoria approached the Liquid Velvet under cover of darkness, before circling the vessel at speed. The ship’s Lynx helicopter was also used. Fort Victoria then followed Liquid Velvet as she retreated towards Somalia.

Nice.

Somali Pirates: Royal Danish Navy Frees Hostages, Nabs Pirates

Following on the U.S. Navy's rescue of an Iranian fishing boat crew and capture of pirates (see here), comes this report, "Danish Warship Frees 14 Hostages in Somalia Action":

A Danish warship freed 14 Iranian and Pakistani hostages following a seaborne action against alleged pirates off Somalia's coast, the Danish Navy said late Saturday.

"The operation took place as planned and without harm to the ship's crew, the hostages or the pirates," said Carsten Fjord Larsen, Captain of the warship Absalon, which conducted the action, in a press statement.

The Danish Navy is now considering what further action to take with the 25 alleged pirates who were found on board, and how to send home the hostages.

HMDS Absalon

On Saturday morning, the Absalon, which is part of a NATO-led anti-piracy operation, pursued a fishing boat it had suspected of being a pirate mother ship for some time, off Somalia's coast in the Indian Ocean.

"After three hours, the 25 pirates gave themselves up. Some began to throw their weapons overboard, and others followed," Larsen told DR News, Denmark's public broadcaster.

The Absalon fired warning shots and gave verbal instructions to the pirates to surrender, he added.

On inspection, the fishing vessel, which was previously hijacked by pirates, was found to contain small motor boats and fuel, allegedly used by the pirates.

Both alleged pirates and hostages are now being registered and questioned, while the fishing vessel is held alongside the Absalon with a view to returning it to its rightful owner.

Well, it just adds to the Kharma! U.S. Navy aids Iranian hostages held by pirates

U.S. Navy Photo of Rescue

U.S. Navy Press Release U.S. Navy Rescues Iranian Fishing Vessel from Pirates in Arabian Sea:

Forces assigned to the John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group, rescued an Iranian fishing vessel from pirates in the northern Arabian Sea, Jan. 5.

At approximately 12:30 p.m local time, an SH-60S Seahawk from guided-missile destroyer USS Kidd (DDG 100) detected a suspected pirate skiff alongside the Iranian-flagged fishing dhow Al Molai. Simultaneously, a distress call was received from the master of the Al Molai claiming he was being held captive by pirates.

A visit, board, search and seizure team from Kidd boarded the Al Molai and detained 15 suspected pirates who had been holding a 13-member Iranian crew hostage for several weeks. The Al Molai had been pirated and used as a "mother ship" for pirate operations throughout the Persian Gulf, according to members of the Iranian vessel's crew.

The pirates did not resist the boarding and surrendered quickly.

"The Al Molai had been taken over by pirates for roughly the last 40-45 days," said Josh Schminky, a Navy Criminal Investigative Service agent aboard the Kidd. "They were held hostage, with limited rations, and we believe were forced against their will to assist the pirates with other piracy operations."

According to members of the Kidd boarding party, the Iranian crew said they were forced by the pirates to live in harsh conditions, under the threat of violence with limited supplies and medical aid.

"When we boarded, we gave them food, water, and medical care," said Schminky. "They had been through a lot. We went out of our way to treat the fishing crew with kindness and respect.

"After securing the ship and ensuring the safety of all persons on board, we began distributing food and water to both the crew and the suspected criminals as is our standard practice in counter-piracy operations," said Schminky.

Video from U.S. Navy helicopter:


I'm sure the Iranian Navy was standing by . . . somewhere.

South Korea wants its "Mystery Missiles"

Patriot Missile

Following up on an earlier post, Waiting for the "good" explanation, concerning a whole bunch of Patriot missiles found adrift on a the Thorco Shipping vessel MS Thor Liberty, it now seems that the South Koreans (a) have claimed the missile cargo and (b) want delivery.

As reported here, there will new protections provided for the vessel and its cargo as the way is went to the ROK:

South Korea is seeking U.S. cooperation to ensure safe shipment of missiles that were detained in Finland, government sources said Thursday.

One source said a British-registered ship, named Thor Liberty, has been authorized to leave the port in Kotka, southern Finland.

The ship, carrying 69 surface-to-air missiles from Germany to South Korea, was impounded there last month.

It sought safe harbor in Finland to avoid a typhoon. Local authorities, however, discovered that the vessel did not have proper transit documents for its shipment of missiles and other explosives, since it was not initially scheduled to make a stop there.

With the ship about to depart for South Korea after clearing administrative issues, safety concerns have emerged, the source said.

"Foreign news wires have reported that the ship has Patriot missiles, and it is possible that pirates and international terrorists could try to seize the ship," the source said. "The government has asked the U.S. to use their intelligence assets to help ensure safe travel of this ship."

The source said the U.S. is operating satellites monitoring situations in the Pacific Ocean and has installed long-range sea surveillance radars in Hawaii and other places.

Another source said the United States will begin real-time monitoring of suspected pirate ships around the planned route for Thor Liberty once the ship leaves Finland.

"I understand the U.S. also plans to dispatch their naval destroyer from nearby once a pirate ship or a suspected one moves closer to the cargo ship," the second source said.

Well, at least there is a plan.

Maybe.


I'm sure that if there are armed security guards on board the UK-flagged vessel as it transits pirate infested waters or other dangerous areas, those guards will be in full compliance with whatever guidelines Parliament may come up with in its efforts to clarify the use of deadly force on UK-flagged ships transiting with armed security guards (see here).

I hope the crew of MS Thor Liberty has a quiet passage for the remainder of this trip. It surely hasn't started out that way.

Brits worry about application of armed force by anti-pirate guards

Can a private security team shoot at these guys? Or does he need to wait until fired upon?

Reported at BBC News - Clarify "lethal force" piracy defence rules, say MPs, worry over "free fire zones at sea" prompts effort to have good rules for private armed security guards:

But Mr Ottaway said much more detail was needed on how UK-flagged vessels could respond, if confronted by pirates.

"The government's guidance on the use of force, particularly lethal force, is very limited and there is little to help a ship's master make a judgement on where force can be used.

"The question anyone would ask is that if a private armed guard on board a UK-flagged vessel sees an armed skiff approaching at high speed, can the guard open fire? The government must provide clearer direction on what is permissible and what is not."

Ok, we're talking British law (as it only applies to UK-flagged ships) but I would assume that once fired upon by an "armed skiff" a security team is justified in returning fire - unless there is some "you must retreat as far as you can rule" before shooting back rule. However, up the to the point of receiving fire there are a whole lot of scenarios that can arise - perhaps the private security teams need to have counsel present.

The pirates, on the other hand, don't seem to be troubled much by rules - or concerns about damage to innocent lives - being outlaws and all.

Update: You can find an excerpt of the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee report on "Piracy off the coast of Somalia" here:

We conclude that the guidance on the use of force, particularly lethal force, is very limited and there is little to help a master make a judgement on where force can be used. The Government must provide clearer direction on what is permissible and what is not. Guidance over the use of potentially lethal force should not be left to private companies to agree upon. We recommend that the change of policy be accompanied by clear, detailed and unambiguous guidance on the legal use of force for private armed guards defending a vessel under attack. This guidance should be consistent with the rules that would govern the use of force by members of the UK armed forces in similar circumstances, and should include:

• the circumstances in which private armed security guards faced with a clear threat of violence may respond with force, including lethal force, where proportionate and necessary, and
• examples of a "graduated response" to an attack, including confirmation that nothing in UK law or the CPS guidance requires a victim of pirate attack to await an aggressor's first blow before acting in self-defence.

We recommend that the Government take this forward as a matter of urgency, as we understand that private armed guards are already being deployed on some UK-flagged vessels.

Somali Pirates: EU to take on pirate shore support?

A hint that the Somali support infrastructure might - just might- be getting some cross hairs fixed on it at Germany: EU Mulls New Powers For Piracy Mission:

German officials say the European Union is considering expanding the scope of its anti-piracy mission off the Horn of Africa to allow the destruction of pirates’ equipment on the beaches of Somalia.

If so, it's about time. The key to pushing back the pirates is on the land and in the littoral waters of Somalia.

UPDATE: More here:

The EU is apparently considering ramping up the operation to target the pirates' weapons arsenals, speedboats and fuel depots on the beach. The plan foresees helicopters targeting the infrastructure from the sea. The aircraft would not, however, fire on people. The German Foreign Ministry stressed that the expanded mission would only involve destroying the onshore infrastructure and would not be "an operation on land."

Some opposition tool is whining:

Omid Nouripour, the defense spokesman for the Green Party's parliamentary group, was even more outspoken. He called the idea of targeting the pirates' onshore facilities "sheer madness." He spoke of the danger of mission creep should the pirates retreat further onshore in response to attacks.

Someone ought to explain to Omid Nouripour the difficulties imposed on the pirates by making them perform logistics 100 miles from the beach.

China: Small Footprint in Seychelles?

As a follow on to my earlier post regarding Seychelles offer of some sort of anti-piracy base to the Chinese at Somali Pirates: Seychelles asks China for counter-pirate "presence"

Reuters reports "China considers Seychelles port offer, denies base plan":

"According to escort needs and the needs of other long-range missions, China will consider seeking supply facilities at appropriate harbours in the Seychelles or other countries," the ministry said on Monday, according to the China Daily.

"This approach is transparent, and there's no cause for worry," the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin told reporters, referring to those discussions.

"China has no plans for establishing military bases abroad," said Liu, adding that he had not heard of any ideas of stationing personnel or aircraft on the Seychelles, an archipelago of 115 islands.

Strait of Malacca Piracy: A Tanker and a Barge Rescued

Reported as Malaysia rescues hijacked tanker, barge:

Malaysia maritime authorities have rescued a tanker and a barge which were hijacked in the latest South China Sea pirate attacks, according to officials.

A tanker carrying oil and gas worth 14 million ringgit ($4.6 million) was hijacked Thursday in the Straits of Singapore, said Syed Mohamad Fuzi Syed Hasan, a regional operations director with the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency.

Authorities located the Malaysian-registered MT Nautica Johor Bahru off the country's east coast Friday after an alert from the shipping company that the vessel was no longer contactable.

Navy ships from Malaysia and neighbouring Indonesia managed to intercept the vessel in Indonesian waters though the pirates, about 10 men armed with a pistol and machetes, got away in a speedboat, Syed Mohamad Fuzi said.

None of the 19 crew members was injured but their belongings were stolen. The tanker was on its way from peninsular Malaysia to Borneo island, he said.

Meanwhile, authorities also rescued a barge with two crew and palm oil worth eight million ringgit on board Thursday off southern Malaysia, said maritime enforcement agency regional commander Zulkifli Abu Bakar.

The barge was hijacked from a fishing boat in Indonesian waters Wednesday while traveling from Borneo to peninsular Malaysia, he said. The six armed pirates had left the barge, presumably to get another tug boat.

Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting centre, called on authorities and ships to be vigilant.

"We hope it's not going to be a start again (of more such attacks). The authorities have to clamp down on these fast," he told AFP. "In this region ships should maintain a strict anti-piracy watch."

The cooperation between Indonesia and Malaysia is to be commended.

UPDATE: More on the tanker rescue here:

The Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) and Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) rescued a tanker with a RM12 million oil and gas cargo, from a group of armed pirates in the South China Sea, Friday night.

RMN Commander of Naval Region 1, First Admiral Datuk Mohamad Roslan Mohamad Ramli said the 19 crew oil tanker MT Nautica Johor Bahru was rescued at 9.10pm after they were given clearance by Indonesia’s Sea Security Coordinating Board to pursue the vessel into Indonesian waters.

Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2011/10/30/navy-mmea-rescue-hijacked-oil-tanker/#ixzz1cNRjuuWl
***

Somali Pirates: A Techno Fix?

DefenceWeb suggestions for modern ways of fighting Somali pirates in "Technology there to find, fix, finish pirates":

Finding pirates before they can launch attacks requires a fully integrated intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance cycle: Intelligence to build an initial picture of the situation; surveillance to develop and update that picture; and focused reconnaissance to add detail and follow up leads to further refine that picture.

UAV

The key elements required to perform this function will include shore-based radars, maritime surveillance and patrol aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicle systems (UAVS); patrol vessels of several types, with embarked helicopters or UAVS; shore-based fixed and mobile sensors, including radar and optronic sensors, and electronic intelligence gathering systems to monitor radar emissions and communications signals.

Fast Manned Patrol Boats

Fast Unmanned Boats

Money to fund this work is, of course, the drawback. The rest of it is essentially correct. As has been discussed here before, the key is to, one way or the other, blockade the pirate operating areas. See, Somali Pirates: U.S. Senator Proposes Legislation for Counter Piracy, Somali Pirates: Hmmm . . . is a pirate port blockade coming? and the links therein. In the latter post, by the way, I touched on the use of UAVs, USVs and more to help in the blockade:

Manned Patrol Aircraft

Anti-Pirate "Mothership"

Containment involves limiting the damage that can be caused by pirates. This can be carried out by naval patrols, convoys, establishing safe routes and blockades of pirate ports, the very sort of activity we now see by naval units in the area.

Drones, patrol aircraft and lots of small fast boats to run down anything that leaves known pirate hangouts.

It could work.

Somali Pirates: Taking them out early

New anti-piracy strategy against Somali pirates? Maybe, as hinted at here:

"I am also heartened to hear from EUNAVFOR that both pirate dhows which have put to sea so far this season have been put out of service, one of them at the bottom of the sea. And also that a pirate whaler acting as a supply ship was also sunk last week through a joint EU/NATO operation Rules of Engagement are already strong, and the naval operations will be given the legal authority they need to deliver effective action. This Government is 100 percent behind a more robust response to piracy, and we are glad to see the Royal Navy, EUNAVFOR and NATO leading the way."

Well, if they can't get to where the ships are, it just might tend to slow them down.

Somali Pirates: British Force Takes Down Pirate "Mothership"

HMS Somerset's Merlin helicopter fires warning shots across the bow of the pirate dhow [Picture: Leading Airman (Photographer) Dave Jenkins, Crown Copyright/MOD 2011]

Reported as British Commandos free 20 crew held hostage on pirate "mothership"in the Indian ocean:

Royal Marine Commandos staged a daring raid freeing 20 sailors held hostage on a pirate 'mothership' afloat in the Indian Ocean, it was revealed today.

Backed by gunfire from a Merlin helicopter, a boarding team stormed the cargo vessel, which had been hijacked by pirates to use as a base to attack merchant shipping in the area.

'Through my weapon sight I could see dark figures moving in the shadows on the bridge,' said Captain Rod Yapp, who led the assault.'We quickly boarded and secured the dhow, then mustered the 24 occupants on her bow.'

UK MOD report, with more pictures, here:

It is believed the dhow was hijacked by suspected pirates so that they could use it as a base, or mother ship, from which to launch attacks against merchant ships many hundreds of miles from Somalia. Throughout this time, the Pakistani crew of the dhow were held hostage onboard.

On Friday 14 October, some 200 miles (320km) off the coast, HMS Somerset and RFA Fort Victoria closed in on the dhow.

HMS Somerset's Commanding Officer, Commander Paul Bristowe, said:

"The mother ship was located by Somerset's Merlin helicopter at first light and the boarding teams brought to immediate notice whilst Somerset closed with the dhow."
***
In the run up to being boarded, the suspected pirates were observed by Somerset's Merlin helicopter ditching equipment and weapons overboard as well as setting one of their skiffs adrift. Despite their desperate attempts to cover their tracks, a large cache of boarding ladders, weapons, a second attack skiff, and equipment from a previously pirated ship were found onboard.

Captain Yapp said:

"There was a clear indication that the suspected pirates found on the dhow were well-practised and knew what they were doing. One of the weapons had recently been fired and was well maintained - as was the RPG [rocket-propelled grenade] rocket.

"I think that if we hadn't disrupted this group of suspected pirates, it is quite possible that they would have attacked another merchant vessel."