OPINION
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Hit Pirates With Somalia Blockade
Policing them where they hold their prey is more effective than ocean patrols
By Nick McMaster
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Posted Dec 4, 08 12:18 PM CST
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(Newser)
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The Somali pirates terrorizing shipping lanes are clever, Peter Fromuth writes in the Washington Post, but their biggest advantages are those pirates have enjoyed throughout history: “big seas, many prey, and few protectors.” There are too many targets for warships to mount effective patrols on open waters. Instead, the UN should blockade the handful of deep-water ports key to pirate operations.
Stationing a warship at each of these ports—including the capital, Mogadishu, could make hijacking much less efficient for the pirates, and would require fewer vessels than current patrol efforts. “Separate the pirates from those havens,” the former State Department lawyer writes, “and their cost-risk ratios may once again favor fishing.”