Somali Pirates: A German Look at Inshore/Ashore Counter-Piracy

Well, if the Somali pirates read der Speigel, they will know how far to nest off the beach, as set out in here, that distance is 2 klicks/km or 1.2 miles:

Last Friday, EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels agreed to expand the operation to include the coastal region. According to information obtained by SPIEGEL ONLINE, the ministers agreed that Atalanta units should be able to target pirates and their infrastructure up to a limit of two kilometers (1.2 miles) inland. If the expansion is approved, it will be the first time that Western forces are allowed to target pirates on the Somali mainland.

The last sentence is not entirely accurate. It is clear that France took forces ashore to whack some pirate thugs 4 years back (see here and here), the U.S. has, on occasion, gone inland to rescue hostages (see here, and there are - rumors - that other countries have had forces doing stuff off the water.

Still, 2 km is progress of sorts in taking the counter-piracy op ashore. In an earlier report in which the Germans revealed "consideration" of taking the fight ashore (see here), there was this whining noise:

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.

And my suggestion of a suitable strike distance - somewhat deeper than 2 km:

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

Somali Pirates: The Defense Strikes Back

FGS Koln

Numerous reports of naval vessels and air units from several different navies taking action against Somali pirates.

First, a German frigate and a French aircraft hit them off Tanzania FGS KOELN disrupts and sinks Pirate Action Group:

On 4 November 2011, following a coordinated search and detection by a French Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance aircraft, the German warship FGS KOELN, operating as part of the EU NAVFOR, disrupted a pirate action group comprising a whaler and skiff, 50 nautical miles off the coast of Tanzania.

Pirates toss RPG over the side (EU NAVFOR photo)

On detection, the suspect pirates jettisoned their pirate equipment overboard and were stopped. They have been transferred onboard FGS KOELN and the two pirate boats sunk, preventing their use against merchant shipping in the area.

Second, a Singapore Navy ship and its helicopter play "Whack-a-Pirate:"

Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) warship RSS Endeavour of the Republic of Singapore, assigned to the mission-based counter-piracy Combined Task Force (CTF) 151, disrupted two separate attacks by suspected pirates on merchant vessels transiting the Arabian Sea south of Oman, Nov.1.

Suspect "Mother Dhow" with skiff (Singapore Navy photo)

RSS Endeavour was conducting counter-piracy operations east of the Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC) in the Gulf of Aden. The Merchant Shipping Industry Best Management Practices (BMP) encourages merchant vessels to register with the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Organisation (UKMTO) whilst in the high risk area for piracy. The MV BW BROKER contacted UKMTO at approximately 8:00am and stated they were being chased by a suspicious skiff with seven people on board. A ladder, which is a tool used by pirates to board vessels, was visible in the skiff and this indicated to the crew that it may be pirates. (CTF) 151 Commander, Rear Admiral Kaleem Shaukat, Pakistan Navy, authorized RSS Endeavour to take appropriate steps to respond. RSS Endeavour altered course to intercept the MV BW BROKER and established direct communication with the merchant vessel. RSS Endeavour also launched one of its embarked helicopters to rapidly provide direct support to the merchant vessel.

Somali Pirates: More on the Hijacking of Beluga Nomination

 See earlier post here.

Reported under the headline "Two sailors from hijacked German ship found in lifeboat":

Beluga Nomination

Two sailors on a German ship have been found in a lifeboat after pirates took control of their vessel last weekend in the Indian Ocean.

The pirates attacked the Bremen-based Beluga Nomination around 800 sea miles north of the Seychelles, prompting reaction from a Seychelles patrol boat and a Danish warship in the area.

The Seychelles patrol boat fired on the ship killing two pirates and two crew members, reported Der Spiegel on Saturday. Yet it was unable to gain control of the Beluga Nomination, and most of the surviving crew locked themselves into a safe room.

At least two others jumped into the free-fall life boat and activated it, plunging into the sea.

The day afterwards the Beluga Nomination stopped as the daily fuel ration was seemingly exhausted. A few hours later another captured ship, the York gas ship arrived, and the two ships were last seen heading towards Somalia.

The two men in the life boat were picked up by the Danish frigate and are said to be in as good a condition as could be expected under the circumstances. A Beluga shipping company spokeswoman confirmed that the fate of the rest of the crew remained unknown.

New York Star

On Friday Somali pirates attacked another German ship, the New York Star tanker which belongs to the Hamburg firm Chemikalien Seetransport.

It was attacked by pirates in a speedboat, a firm spokesman said on Saturday. The captain tried avoidance manoeuvres while the crew locked themselves in a safe room. The Dutch frigate De Ruyter came to its aid and soldiers boarded to check for pirates before giving the all-clear.

New York Star will continue its journey from Saudi Arabia to Singapore with its load of naphtha.

MV New York Star photo by Marcel and Ruud Coster from Shipspotting.com and used iaw the terms of that site.

Somali Pirates: Reports of Hijacked Ship

Beluga Nomination

Reports of a ship being hijacked off the Seychelles: Somali pirates seize ship carrying Ukrainians:

Somali pirates have seized a vessel carrying 12 sailors including Ukrainians, Filipinos, Poles and Russians in the Indian Ocean, Ukraine's foreign ministry said on Monday.

The German-owned MV Beluga Nomination was captured 100 kilometres (62 miles) off the Seychelles, a ministry statement said, but it did not indicate the number of nationals from each country.

See also here.

The ship is a 12,500DWT cargo ship. See here. More on the ship here at its operators site.

Somali Pirates: Frustrated Pirates Call Shipping Company

An interesting interview from Der Spiegel Online Pirates and the Panic Room: 'We Got an Angry Phone Call' involving the thwarted highjacking of the Magellan Star:

Salamon: What is most important is that they could not take any hostages. Furthermore, the captain set up the engine so it could not be started in the usual way. When the pirates noticed that, we got an angry phone call from them at the shipping company.

Worth reading it all.

Somali Pirates: Interntional Effort Leads to Maltese soldiers nabbing suspected pirates

Last Friday, a German patrol plane, a Dutch warship and Maltese soldiers teamed up to grab some suspected pirates as set here:

. . . Dutch warship Johan de Witt, on which the Maltese soldiers are based, intercepted a skiff with six suspected pirates on board in the Gulf of Aden.

The skiff was detected by a German Orion patrol maritime aircraft as it was moving towards HNLMS Johan de Witt at great speed.

As the alarm was sounded on board the ship, an Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) security team rapidly prepared itself for action.

As soon as those aboard the skiff realised that they were dealing with a military vessel, they changed course in the direction of the coast. The Dutch warship fired a number of warning shots, after which the boat stopped and the suspected pirates surrendered. The AFM security team quickly secured the skiff and transferred those on board onto the navy ship.

Photo is from the Neterhlands Ministry of Defence

Somali Pirates: Two Failed Attacks, Thanks to Navy Ships

Reported here:

On the morning of November 5th a General Cargo ship and a Bulk Carrier were attacked in the Gulf of Aden. Cooperation between EU NAVFOR and NATO prevented two more hijackings.

Early in the morning, MV Theoforus I, a Panama flagged Bulk Carrier was attacked by pirates using automatic weapons and a Rocket Propelled Grenade. The ship took evasive action until the arrival of a NATO Turkish naval vessel TCG Gediz arrived on the scene. The warship neutralized a suspected skiff in the vicinity of the attack position and weapons and pirate paraphernalia were seized.

A few hours later MV BBC Thames, a Liberian flagged General Cargo Ship, reported being under attack. EU NAVFOR German warship FGS Bremen was immediately tasked to support the Cargo ship and the Bremen’s helicopter was launched. The attackers fled but Bremen found a skiff in the vicinity and on sighting the helicopter the skiff stopped. FGS Bremen conducted a boarding where weapons, ammunition and RPG grenades were found and seized.

Somali Pirates: Two Ship Fight Off Attacks

Reported here:

03/11/2009 10.01 UTC

In the afternoon of November 2nd some 360 nautical miles east of Mombasa, Kenya, pirates attempted to hijack MV Harriette and MV Jo Cedar.

MV Harriette, a US flagged Cargo vessel was attacked by two small skiffs. The pirates opened fire with automatic weapons. Rocket Propelled grenades were also seen by the crew of the Harriette. The pirates tried to get onboard the vessel with a ladder but the master of Harriette made evasive maneuvers and succeeded in keeping the pirates off his ships. Nobody was reported injured on board.

Some hours later, MV Jo Cedar, a Dutch flagged Tanker, reported being under attack in roughly the same position. The vessel was under attack by three fast attack skiffs. The pirates fired their automatic weapons damaging the bridge wing. Rocket Propelled grenades were sighted but not fired. With evasive maneuvers and speed this vessel also escaped the clutches of the pirates. Nobody was reported injured on board. (Photo of MVJo Cedar by Michael Marshall from ShipSpotting.com and used in accord with ShipSpotting.com policies)

An EU NAVFOR Maritime Patrol Aircraft based in Seychelles was tasked to investigate the area and EU NAVFOR German warship FGS Karlsruhe was ordered immediately to search and neutralize the pirate attack group.

EU says some pirates disrupted here:

On the morning of Tuesday November 3rd EU NAVFOR German warship Karlsruhe stopped a suspected pirate mother skiff in the Indian Ocean. The skiff was possibly involved in the attack on US flagged Cargo vessel, MV Harriette or Dutch flagged M/V Jo Cedar.

EU NAVFOR German warship FGS Karlsruhe was tasked yesterday to investigate an area where two merchant vessels had been attacked. An EU NAVFOR Maritime Patrol Aircraft working in support of this operation located the skiff and directed the helicopter of Karlsruhe to the location.

On arrival at the scene, EU NAVFOR warship Karlsruhe launched a boarding team and, on approaching the skiff, persons on board were seen to throw objects into the water. The skiff’s four man crew were questioned and claimed to be fishermen. No nets were found and any weapons they may have had had been disposed of. However, some items that could be used in pirate attacks were still onboard and this pirate related paraphernalia was seized. After further questioning, the individuals were eventually released to return to the Somali coast.

UPDATE: Approximate locations of attacks:

Somali Pirates: Attack on French fishing vessel deterred by armed guards, 7 pirates nabbed

Reported here:

In the afternoon of October 27th 2009, 350 nautical miles east of Mogadishu, Somalia a French Fishing Vessel was attacked by pirates in two attack skiffs. The pirates opened fire on the Fishing Vessel. Her embarked military Vessel Protection Detachment (VPD) fired warning shots after which the pirates broke of their attack.

The EU NAVFOR German warship FGS Karlsruhe, on anti-piracy patrol in the area, was ordered to set course to the attack position. Simultaneously, the helicopter of EU NAVFOR Spanish warship ESPS Canarias, also on anti-piracy patrol, was launched and relocated two fast attack skiffs trying to flee the area of the attack.

The helicopter fired warning shots to stop both skiffs, after which the pirates stopped and were seen throwing items, presumably pirate paraphernalia, overboard. On arrival of FGS Karlsruhe her boarding team secured both skiffs, and found seven persons on board of the two skiffs. The French Fishing vessel was requested to return to the scene to identify their attackers. Upon their statements the seven suspected pirates were detained on board FGS Karlsruhe.

EU photos.

Somali Pirates: Proactive Deterrence

Reported here

Today, a helicopter from the EU NAVFOR German warship BREMEN, identified suspected pirate craft in the Somali Basin. The suspect craft were made up of a mother skiff and two smaller skiffs, near the islands of Seychelles (0109S 5355E).

The EU NAVFOR helicopter fired warning shots and the skiffs stopped. The crew from the helicopter observed that the suspected pirates threw a number of items over board. A boarding party from the German warship found on the skiff grappling hooks, ammunition, GPS and 10 barrels of fuel. The skiffs had no fishing equipment onboard and after confiscating the suspected pirate equipment the mother skiff and crew were released.

You might note that the incident occurred about 600 miles off the Somali coast, or about 3x the distance of any "Exclusive Economic Zone" Somalia could claim:

Article57

Breadth of the exclusive economic zone

The exclusive economic zone shall not extend beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.

Gulf of Aden: German navy captures nine pirates in Somalia pirate attack

Sudanese and Somali pirates captured in the Gulf of Aden, as reported here:

The German navy detained nine people Tuesday following a dramatic action to head off a pirate attack on a German merchant vessel off the coast of Somalia. A tricky deliberation process has started in Germany, which has to decide how to legally proceed with the pirates.

This is the first time in the history of modern Germany's navy that anyone has been apprehended at sea.

According to German Defence Ministry in Berlin, a vessel owned by a Bremen-based shipping company, the MV Courier, was attacked by pirates during early morning Tuesday.

The ministry said that the pirates were armed with anti-tank rocket launchers and firearms.

US Navy helicopters thwarted the attack with soldiers of the German frigate Rheinland-Pfalz a short time later, seizing the pirate's boat and arresting nine people, the Defence Ministry said.

Some of the pirates were from Sudan, the ministry said.

Photo of ship believed to the Courier from Shipspotting.com, Jens Smit

Somalia: The German Dilemma

The Germans face a question of whether they can take on the Somali pirates, as set out here:

The German Navy has a ship cruising off the coast of Somalia: frigate Emden is searching for terrorists there. The Germans would be allowed to intervene if the pirates were members of Al-Qa'idah. They do not intervene when they are ordinary criminals. The problems in this world simply refuse to match with Germany's domestic policy.

UPDATE: Well, the Germans can buy their way out of the problem for only a couple of million dollars.

Of course, as noted here:

The problem with paying ransom, as I see it, is not the money itself, which could be recouped through insurance or written off as a cost of doing business in a hazardous area. The problem is letting the pirates use the money to buy more and better arms or to finance insurgencies. Dead pirates, however, cannot enjoy their ill-gotten gains.

As I note in a comment: "Punishment must be swift, certain and get the higher ups in the pirate hierarchy. Otherwise the risks/reward ratio in a land where there are not many other ways to make a living will be in favor of continued piracy, especially if the risk to the "pirate warlords" is low..."