2 ships reported hijacked off Somali coast

[WhiteTara]

Source: Yahoo AP

LONDON – A British-flagged cargo ship and a chemical tanker from Singapore have both been hijacked by pirates in the perilous waters off the coast of Somalia, officials said Saturday.

The Asian Glory highjacking happened late Friday roughly 600 miles (1,000 kilometers) east of Somalia, said Commander John Harbour, a spokesman with the European Union task force charged with combating piracy off Somalia.

That same day, the Singaporean-flagged Pramoni, a chemical tanker with a crew of 24, was seized by pirates in the Gulf of Aden, one of the world's busiest waterways.

Harbour said the Asian Glory's crew of 25 appeared to be safe and that the pirates had not yet made contact with the ship's owner, Zodiac Management Agencies.

"The standard procedure for the pirates is to get the ship back to their stronghold and then contact the owner," he said. "I don't know yet where the ship is bound."

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100102/ap_on_bi_ge/piracy

---

Wonder where they are spending the money?
Read this
Pirate cash suspected cause of Kenya property boom
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100101/ap_on_re_af/af_kenya_pirate_property

The hike in real estate prices in the Kenyan capital has prompted a public outcry and a government investigation this month into property owned by foreigners. The investigation follows allegations that millions of dollars in ransom money paid to Somali pirates are being invested in Kenya, Somalia's southern neighbor and East Africa's largest economy.

Even as housing prices have dropped sharply in the United States, prices in Nairobi have seen two- and three-fold increases the last half decade.

"There is suspicion that some of the money that is being collected in piracy is being laundered by purchase of property in several countries, this one being one of them," said government spokesman Alfred Mutua. "Especially at this time when we are facing global challenges of security such as terrorism and others, it is very important for us to know who is where and who owns what."

The investigation will also help the government catch tax evaders, he said.

[ensho]

1. kick

nt

[sce56]

2. Now if they really wanted to stop this they would have convoys going throught the area like the US

did during the Iran Iraq conflict! All they have to do is set routes then have them stage at one area until enough ships converge to send through at one time with Naval escort!

[lostinseganet1]

3. Hmm I like your thinking.

That sounds like a good idea. How do they lose track of these cargo ships? GPS?

[WhiteTara]

6. welcome to DU

:hi:

[tabasco]

4. How do these assholes get onboard?

It seems to me one guy with an automatic rifle could prevent any of these hijackings.

[hayu_lol]

5. Seems as if the UN could pay for a satellite to be placed...

in an orbit over this stretch of ocean/coastline and then monitor 24/7 for pirate action.

The convoy idea is a good one considering the value of these ships and cargo, not to mention the lives of the crew. UN could set that up as well. Funding could come from the shippers who send their vessels through those waters--cheaper than ransom.

[pitchforksandtorches]

7. Here is the problem

Global warming, earthquakes, hurricanes, and other natural disasters are a direct effect of the shrinking numbers of Pirates since the 1800s. For your interest, I have included a graph of the approximate number of pirates versus the average global temperature over the last 200 years. As you can see, there is a statistically significant inverse relationship between pirates and global temperature.