Somali Pirates Standoff Continues
The U.S. flagged ship Maersk Alabama and it’s 19 crew members who managed to retake control of the vessel after being seized by Somali pirates earlier this week has reached it’s destination Kenya’s harbor today. The ships Captain Richard Phillips is still being held hostage on a lifeboat.
The high-seas drama began on Wednesday, when pirates attempted to take over the vessel which was loaded with food aid for people in Somalia, Rwanda and Uganda.
The intense standoff is now in day four.
The Associated Press has spoken with a diplomat based in Nairobi, who reported that the pirates holding Phillips have appealed for help from four commandeered ships however, surveillance aircraft from the U.S. Navy and two U.S. ships are preventing pirate ships and skiffs from contacting the lifeboat. The lifeboat which has since run out of gas (I hate when that happens!) and is surrounded by military ships.
According to sources it is the intent of the captors to take Phillips to Somalia, hide him and then begin ransom negotiations. They have indicated that they will kill the captain if they come under attack.
The USS Boxer equipped with a mobile hospital, missile launchers and approximately two dozen helicopters and planes and a crew of more than 1000, is expected at the scene soon. The ship is part of a multination anti-piracy task force.
According to sources the U.S. rules of engagement prevent the Americans from launching an offensive against the pirates if such a move would endanger civilians.
Defense officials from the United States have reported that negotiations are underway. The pirates have ask for $2 million for the safe release of the hostage.
In a new development, the head of the East African Seafarers‘ Assistance Program said that at around 11 a.m. today Somali pirates had hijacked an American-owned tugboat which was towing two barges in the Gulf of Aden.
It is unclear whether the the attack took place off the coast of Somalia or further north near Yemen.
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Somali Pirates Continue to Hold Captain Hostage
Tags: captain richard phillips, hostage richard phillips, somali, Somalia Pirates, uss bainbridge, uss boxer
