American captain rescued, pirates killed, U.S. official says

[ProfJohn]

Please keep this topic on the freedom of the captain and how that freedom was obtained. And whether future military action similar to this will make a difference in the number of piracy attacks we see.

Think they will mess with an American ship again???

link

- The captain of the Maersk Alabama was freed Sunday after being held captive since Wednesday by pirates off the coast of Somalia, a senior U.S. official with knowledge of the situation told CNN.

The official said Capt. Richard Phillips is uninjured and in good condition, and that three of the four pirates were killed. The fourth pirate is in custody. Phillips was taken aboard the USS Bainbridge, a nearby naval warship.

Earlier Sunday afternoon Maersk Line Limited, owner of the Maersk Alabama, said the U.S. Navy informed the company that it had sighted Phillips in a lifeboat where pirates are holding him.

Phillips was spotted another time earlier in the day, the Navy said.

On Saturday, the FBI launched a criminal investigation into the hijacking of the U.S.-flagged cargo ship by Somali pirates, two law enforcement officials told CNN. The probe will be led by the FBI's New York field office, which is responsible for looking into cases involving U.S. citizens in the African region, the officials said.

The Maersk Alabama reached port in Mombasa, Kenya, on Saturday. Crew members aboard the freed cargo ship described how some of their colleagues attempted to "jump" their pirate captors.

A scuffle ensued and one of the sailors stabbed a pirate in the hand in the battle to retake the container ship, one of the sailors told CNN.

Snippets of information are starting to emerge about how the Alabama's crew managed to retake the ship after it was hijacked by pirates Wednesday about 350 miles off the coast of Somalia in the Indian Ocean.

Crew members smiled broadly as they stood on the ship's deck under the watchful eyes of security teams. Although the crew was kept away from the media, CNN's Stan Grant got close enough to ask crew members what happened after the pirates climbed aboard the ship.

One crew member said he recalled being awakened around 7 a.m. as the hijacking began.

"I was scared," Grant quoted the man as saying.

Some of the crew managed to hide in a secure part of the Alabama as the pirates stormed the ship, the sailor said.

As the sailors described their clash with the pirates, a crew member pointed to one shipmate and said, "This guy is a hero. He and the chief engineer, they took down the pirate. ... He led him down there to the engine room and then they jumped him."

The shipmate added that he stabbed the pirate's hand and tied him up.

"Capt. Phillips is a hero," another crew member shouted from the deck of the freed ship.

Since Phillips was captured Wednesday, the destroyer USS Bainbridge has been in the area of the lifeboat, trying to free him.

An attempt by Phillips to escape from the 28-foot covered lifeboat was thwarted by a pirate, who dove into the Indian Ocean after him. Phillips' captors appear to have tied him up afterward, Pentagon officials said.

The Alabama resumed its course on Thursday for Mombasa, its original destination, carrying food aid and an armed 18-person security detail.

Maersk president and CEO John Reinhart told reporters Saturday that the crew will stay on board in Mombasa while the FBI conducts an investigation.

 

[da loser]

cnn said the 4th pirate survived because he was on the ship negotiating

 

[Slew Foot]

About time, good job.

 

[Harvey]

Also on MS-NBC.

:beer: :thumbsup: :music:

 

[ProfJohn]

Thanks Harvey, first decent story I have read with some details.

Still want more details... I guess we have to wait a few hours or days to get the story.

 

[Balt]

Nice. I hope we get to hear how they did it.

 

[Harvey]

Originally posted by: ProfJohn
Thanks Harvey, first decent story I have read with some details.

Still want more details... I guess we have to wait a few hours or days to get the story.

Can't trust that damned liburuhl media.

 

[ProfJohn]

Well right now everyone has the same basic story.

Capt free
3 dead
1 captured

Have not heard anything else.

My guess is that some Seals popped out of the water in the middle of the night and that was that.

 

[wwswimming]

it's not as black & white as the mainstream media presents it.

other countries have a pattern of dumping toxic & nuclear waste in the waters
off the Somali coast, among other African nations.

And another pattern of stealing the locals' fish - fish they depend on to
survive. some of the piracy emerged in response to the theft of fish from
Somali waters.


"Take this fact: Over $300 million worth of tuna, shrimp, and lobster are "being stolen every year by illegal trawlers" off Somalia's coast, forcing the fishing industry there into a state of virtual non-existence.

But it isn't just the theft of seafood. Nuclear dumping has polluted the environment. "In 1991, the government of Somalia collapsed," wrote Johann Hari in The Independent. "Its nine million people have been teetering on starvation ever since -- and the ugliest forces in the Western world have seen this as a great opportunity to steal the country's food supply and dump our nuclear waste in their seas."

According to Hari:

As soon as the [Somali] government was gone, mysterious European ships started appearing off the coast of Somalia, dumping vast barrels into the ocean. The coastal population began to sicken. At first they suffered strange rashes, nausea and malformed babies. Then, after the 2005 tsunami, hundreds of the dumped and leaking barrels washed up on shore. People began to suffer from radiation sickness, and more than 300 died.
?

This is the context in which the "pirates" have emerged. Somalian fishermen took speedboats to try to dissuade the dumpers and trawlers, or at least levy a "tax" on them. They call themselves the Volunteer Coastguard of Somalia -- and ordinary Somalis agree. The independent Somalian news site WardheerNews found 70 per cent "strongly supported the piracy as a form of national defence."

http://www.alternet.org/audits...ole_story/?page=entire

http://www.independent.co.uk/o...t-pirates-1225817.html


Yes, in some cases, what the Somali pirates do is terrible.

In many cases, what is done to the Somali people by European nations and the US is
far more terrible.

What most Americans know about Somalia they got from Blackhawk down & American
media. not reliable sources of information on the subject.

 

[ProfJohn]

ummmm delate that crap of a post and get back on topic... the captain is free.

 

[ProfJohn]

damn time warp!!!

 

[waggy]

Originally posted by: wwswimming
it's not as black & white as the mainstream media presents it.

other countries have a pattern of dumping toxic & nuclear waste in the waters
off the Somali coast, among other African nations.

And another pattern of stealing the locals' fish - fish they depend on to
survive. some of the piracy emerged in response to the theft of fish from
Somali waters.


"Take this fact: Over $300 million worth of tuna, shrimp, and lobster are "being stolen every year by illegal trawlers" off Somalia's coast, forcing the fishing industry there into a state of virtual non-existence.

But it isn't just the theft of seafood. Nuclear dumping has polluted the environment. "In 1991, the government of Somalia collapsed," wrote Johann Hari in The Independent. "Its nine million people have been teetering on starvation ever since -- and the ugliest forces in the Western world have seen this as a great opportunity to steal the country's food supply and dump our nuclear waste in their seas."

According to Hari:

As soon as the [Somali] government was gone, mysterious European ships started appearing off the coast of Somalia, dumping vast barrels into the ocean. The coastal population began to sicken. At first they suffered strange rashes, nausea and malformed babies. Then, after the 2005 tsunami, hundreds of the dumped and leaking barrels washed up on shore. People began to suffer from radiation sickness, and more than 300 died.
?

This is the context in which the "pirates" have emerged. Somalian fishermen took speedboats to try to dissuade the dumpers and trawlers, or at least levy a "tax" on them. They call themselves the Volunteer Coastguard of Somalia -- and ordinary Somalis agree. The independent Somalian news site WardheerNews found 70 per cent "strongly supported the piracy as a form of national defence."

http://www.alternet.org/audits...ole_story/?page=entire

http://www.independent.co.uk/o...t-pirates-1225817.html


Yes, in some cases, what the Somali pirates do is terrible.

In many cases, what is done to the Somali people by European nations and the US is
far more terrible.

What most Americans know about Somalia they got from Blackhawk down & American
media. not reliable sources of information on the subject.

i would say thats a diffrent thread. but for now how about not trolling in this one?

 

[GoingUp]

Touchdown for Democracy!

 

[Harvey]

Originally posted by: wwswimming

Yes, in some cases, what the Somali pirates do is terrible.

In many cases, what is done to the Somali people by European nations and the US is far more terrible.

Irrelevant. Relativistic arguments about other grievances are meaningless regarding imperatives of right and wrong like hijacking ships and holding hostages for ransom. :thumbsdown:

 

[ProfJohn]

Damnit!!! I am agreeing with Harvey! WTF!

The only good that will come of this is the end of global warming because hell is starting to freeze over.

 

[Harvey]

Originally posted by: ProfJohn

Damnit!!! I am agreeing with Harvey! WTF!

The only good that will come of this is the end of global warming because hell is starting to freeze over.

BUAHAHAHAhahahaha!!!! :laugh:

If you're right, this is great news. Two major issues solved in one good news story.

 

[maddogchen]

its gonna be more difficult from here on out. You have French commandos killing and rescuing hostages and now you have US commandos doing the same. Now pirate crews are going to go out with more weapons and probably more pirates.

 

[ProfJohn]

update

The American captain of a cargo ship held hostage by pirates jumped overboard from the lifeboat where he was being held, and U.S. Navy SEALs shot and killed three of his four captors, according to a senior U.S. official with knowledge of the situation.

Capt. Richard Phillips was helped out of the water off the Somali coast and is uninjured and in good condition, the official said. He was taken aboard the USS Bainbridge, a nearby naval warship.

At the time of the shootings, the fourth pirate was aboard the USS Bainbridge negotiating with officials, the source said. That pirate was taken into custody.

 

[waggy]

Originally posted by: ProfJohn
update

The American captain of a cargo ship held hostage by pirates jumped overboard from the lifeboat where he was being held, and U.S. Navy SEALs shot and killed three of his four captors, according to a senior U.S. official with knowledge of the situation.

Capt. Richard Phillips was helped out of the water off the Somali coast and is uninjured and in good condition, the official said. He was taken aboard the USS Bainbridge, a nearby naval warship.

At the time of the shootings, the fourth pirate was aboard the USS Bainbridge negotiating with officials, the source said. That pirate was taken into custody.

good news.

figured that is what happened.

 

[Wheezer]

YAY!!!

now find the "mother ship" and sink the fucker.

 

[StageLeft]

Awesome. Pirates got owned epicaly and fully. I am guessing there were guns trained on that lifeboat from hour 0 when the warship showed up and they finally ended up with a chance to turn it to a killing zone without the captain being hit.

its gonna be more difficult from here on out. You have French commandos killing and rescuing hostages and now you have US commandos doing the same. Now pirate crews are going to go out with more weapons and probably more pirates.

I don't think that strategy will work for them. It's no secret where these guys are on land, it wouldn't be a terribly difficult job to start firebombing their general area. It's not happened yet because of the various innocents in the general vicinity, though.

 

[Dari]

Originally posted by: Harvey

Originally posted by: wwswimming

Yes, in some cases, what the Somali pirates do is terrible.

In many cases, what is done to the Somali people by European nations and the US is far more terrible.

Irrelevant. Relativistic arguments about other grievances are meaningless regarding imperatives of right and wrong like hijacking ships and holding hostages for ransom. :thumbsdown:

Rights and wrongs are also relative.

 

[waggy]

Originally posted by: Dari

Originally posted by: Harvey

Originally posted by: wwswimming

Yes, in some cases, what the Somali pirates do is terrible.

In many cases, what is done to the Somali people by European nations and the US is far more terrible.

Irrelevant. Relativistic arguments about other grievances are meaningless regarding imperatives of right and wrong like hijacking ships and holding hostages for ransom. :thumbsdown:

Rights and wrongs are also relative.

then make a thread on that instead of trying to hijack this one?

 

[Dari]

Originally posted by: Skoorb
Awesome. Pirates got owned epicaly and fully. I am guessing there were guns trained on that lifeboat from hour 0 when the warship showed up and they finally ended up with a chance to turn it to a killing zone without the captain being hit.

its gonna be more difficult from here on out. You have French commandos killing and rescuing hostages and now you have US commandos doing the same. Now pirate crews are going to go out with more weapons and probably more pirates.

I don't think that strategy will work for them. It's no secret where these guys are on land, it wouldn't be a terribly difficult job to start firebombing their general area. It's not happened yet because of the various innocents in the general vicinity, though.

And you don't think others will replace them? I don't think America has learned much from 9/11. Failed states don't get fixed with guns.

 

[Dari]

Originally posted by: waggy

Originally posted by: Dari

Originally posted by: Harvey

Originally posted by: wwswimming

Yes, in some cases, what the Somali pirates do is terrible.

In many cases, what is done to the Somali people by European nations and the US is far more terrible.

Irrelevant. Relativistic arguments about other grievances are meaningless regarding imperatives of right and wrong like hijacking ships and holding hostages for ransom. :thumbsdown:

Rights and wrongs are also relative.

then make a thread on that instead of trying to hijack this one?

Whatever. I have no doubt that you used to play Cowboys n' Indians as a child. You think this shit is any different from the real cowboys and Indians from the 19th century?