Pirates in ships are searching for the lifeboat containing four pirates and their hostage — the captain of a freighter they failed to hijack earlier this week — according to a U.S. military official with knowledge of the situation.
A former crew member on the American ship attacked by pirates off Africa said the ship’s captain is exactly the kind of person who would offer himself in exchange for the crew’s safety.
It is well past time to take a serious look at piracy off the coast of Africa.
Somali pirates have turned high-seas kidnappings into a lucrative business, one that netted between $50 million and $150 million last year, a former Navy SEAL told CNN.
A U.S. warship arrived before dawn Thursday near a 28-foot lifeboat holding four pirates and the kidnapped captain of a U.S.-flagged cargo ship, officials said.
A crew member aboard a freighter seized by pirates off east Africa said Wednesday that the crew had captured one of four pirates who hijacked their vessel, but they released him in a failed hostage trade.
Incident details: “Armed pirates chased, boarded and hijacked a fishing trawler underway” southeast of Mogadishu, Somalia. “Several persons armed with machine guns, rocket-propelled grenade launchers and machetes attempting to climb onboard with use of rope” at Lagos anchorage, Nigeria.
A sudden surge of pirate attacks off the coast of eastern Somalia in recent days has prompted the U.S. military to put out a new alert to mariners, warning of increased danger in the region.
A British-owned cargo ship on Monday became the latest vessel to be seized by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden.
U.S. naval forces hunting pirates off Somalia detained six people this week who appeared to be pursuing a commercial shipping vessel, but soon released them because of a lack of evidence.