Tanker Owner Recounts Pirate Drama

High-profile hostage rescues fail to prevent fresh hijackings

(NEWSER) - Somali pirates have seized another three ships in the Gulf of Aden, the AP reports. Two Egyptian fishing boats were hijacked yesterday and a Greek-owned freighter with at least 20 crew on board was seized before dawn today by pirates evidently undeterred by the recent standoff with the US Navy. The freighter reported a suspicious vessel but received no response on emergency channels, according to a security contractor. More»

Entering high-risk areas or navigating around South Africa both add millions

(NEWSER) - Piracy in the Gulf of Aden is driving up shipping costs as companies are forced to choose between paying higher insurance or taking longer routes, the AP reports. Premiums have reportedly risen at least tenfold for travel near the Somali coast, and avoiding the Gulf of Aden by navigating around the African continent adds thousands of miles and millions in fuel costs. More»

Dozen crew members include Filipinos and an Indonesian

(AP) - Somali pirates have hijacked a tanker and its crew of 12 Filipinos and one Indonesian. The cargo the Longchamp is carrying is unknown. Though the Gulf of Aden is now patrolled by more than a dozen warships from countries including Britain, France, Germany, Iran, and the US, they were not involved in the incident. Pirates, an increasing problem for international shipping, earned $30 million in ransom last year. More»

Religious sheikhs preach against sea bandits and their un-Islamic ways

(NEWSER) - Somalia's pirates are facing an enemy on land many of them fear more than foreign warships, the New York Times reports. Sheikhs and Islamic clerics are preaching against the "burcad badeed"—Somali for sea bandits—accusing them of introducing evils like drugs and alcohol to Somali society and urging citizens to form anti-pirate militias. More»

(AP) - Somali pirates have hijacked a German cargo ship carrying a crew of 11 in the Gulf of Aden, the latest seizure by high-seas bandits who are holding hundreds of merchant mariners hostage, the AP reports.The MV Victoria was captured yesterday 75 miles south of Yemen. There is no information on the condition of the Romanian crew aboard the Antigua and Barbuda-flagged ship. More»