NATO Warship Iver Huitfeldt Frees Danish Ship After Pirate Attack

December 16^th  the Danish MV Torm Kristina was sailing to Muscat, Oman, in order to perform a quick logistical port visit, when she was approached by 2 suspected pirate skiffs. The crew quickly assembled in the citadel and sent a mayday message out.

Meanwhile the mayday message was passed to the Commander of the NATO counter piracy task force, Rear Admiral Antonio Natale. He tasked one of the NATO warships HDMS Iver Huitfeldt, which was in Muscat for a port visit and therefore only 90 miles away, to proceed to the MV Torn Kristina and assist her.

By the time the NATO warship arrived on the scene three hours later, the pirates had left the Torm Kristina. It is believed that they saw the warship coming towards them and realised they had no realistic possibility of taking control of the Torm Kristina.
A boarding party from the Iver Huitfeldt boarded the Torm Kristina, searched the ship to ensure that no pirates were still on board and once this was established they freed the crew from the citadel.

Vice Admiral Christian Canova, Deputy Commander at Allied Maritime Command said, “Despite the winter monsoon which generates bad sea states, this incident demonstrates the pirates are still active and able to operate far away from Somalia but we are watching them and when Best Management Practices such as citadels are in effect on merchant vessels, we are able to react quickly and deter pirate actions. Once again, NATO warships have proved their ability to react quickly and to use their speed and capabilities to deter and disrupt piracy and to free innocent merchant sailors. This incident shows that we cannot be complacent.”

MV Torm Kristina is now free to sail.

UPDATED: Later reports state that no security team was embarked at the time of the approach, but the shipowners' association has stated that the guards were on their way to the ship. Christian Søgaard, vice president of Torm, confirmed this - Shipping Watch - to be the case, though he, rightly, refrains from revealing where the guards would be picked up.

Alleged pirates blame Navy, FBI for deaths

Lawyers for three Somali men accused of killing four Americans aboard a yacht claim the deaths resulted from actions by the U.S. Navy and the FBI.

Defense lawyers say an unstable situation was created by what they call "aggressive actions" by the Navy and "the failure to conduct the negotiations with the Somalis in a proper fashion."

Media outlets say defense lawyers made these arguments in motions filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Norfolk.

Co-defendants Ahmed Muse Salad, Abukar Osman Beyle and Shani Nurani Shiekh Abrar could face the death penalty if they're convicted.

The owners of the yacht Quest, Jean and Scott Adam of Marina del Rey, Calif., along with friends Bob Riggle and Phyllis Macay of Seattle, were the first Americans to be killed in a wave of pirate attacks off the coast of east Africa despite an international flotilla of warships that regularly patrol the area. The Adamses had been sailing full-time on their 58-foot yacht since December 2004 after retiring when their boat was boarded by 19 men several hundred miles south of Oman.

Pirates had been hoping to bring the Americans back to Somalia to conduct ransom negotiations, but that plan fell apart when U.S. Navy warships began shadowing the Quest. The Navy had told the pirates that they could keep the yacht in exchange for the hostages, but they refused to take the deal because they didn't believe they would get enough money. The only person authorized to negotiate the Americans' release was also based in Somalia.

The destroyer USS Sterett was maneuvering between the Quest and the Somali coast when a rocket-propelled grenade was fired at it. Soon after, shots were fired on board the Quest.

Four of the hijackers died on board. Eleven other men have pleaded guilty to piracy and been sentenced to life in prison for their roles in the case.

Defense lawyers say the yacht captain, fearing the hijackers would harm him and the other hostages, repeatedly asked Navy officials not to come too close in the days leading up to the incident. The Navy agreed each time.

"While the defense does not contend that the actions of the Navy/FBI are legal defenses to any of the charges, it is without dispute that none of the Americans had been harmed until the Navy/FBI acted in an extremely aggressive fashion," defense lawyers wrote.

They filed another motion seeking a change of venue for the trial, claiming that the Navy's large presence in Norfolk and local media coverage likely has tainted the jury pool. They also noted that a movie about Somali piracy starring Tom Hanks, "Captain Phillips", was filmed in part in Norfolk. The movie is about the captain of a cargo ship captured by Somali pirates in 2009.

EUNAVFOR pledges to remain committed to antipiracy effort

EUNAVFOR pledges to remain committed to antipiracy effort(Forimmediaterelease.net) Rear Admiral Duncan Potts, EUNAVFOR Operation Commander for the European Union Naval Forces anti-piracy mission, paid a courtesy call on Seychelles President James Michel this morning at State House. His visit follows their meeting in the United Kingdom in February this year during the President’s official visit to the United Kingdom, as well the President’s call on world leaders and organizations such as the United Nations and the European Union for more support in the fight against piracy.

Rear Admiral Potts was accompanied by the EUNAVFOR Force Commander, Rear Admiral Enrico Credendino; the British High Commissioner to Seychelles, HE Mrs. Lindsay Skoll; Political Advisor for EUNAVFOR, Mrs. Joanne Hamer; Chief of Staff Commander Jerome Origny; EUNAVFOR Liaison Officer, Lieutenant Commander John Simpson; and the Italian Consul to Seychelles, Claudio Izzi. The Seychelles Minister for Foreign Affairs, Jean-Paul Adam, and the Secretary of State in the Office of the President, Barry Faure, were also present during the meeting.

President Michel and Rear Admiral Potts discussed the progress made over the last three years in terms of the coordinated approach being used in the fight against piracy, the reduction in the number of piracy incidents this year, as well as the success of anti-piracy efforts and political progress that has taken place following the London Conference on Somalia held in the United Kingdom in February. The President spoke about the plight of the two Seychellois hostages in Somalia and the challenges in gaining their release.

“We are grateful for the support of the European Union Naval Forces in the fight against piracy, especially as there have been substantial results in the last year … Seychelles is always ready to play its part in achieving regional peace and stability, and we are encouraged by the positive changes and progress taking place on the ground in Somalia that will bring about the conditions to prevent future piracy. Somalia needs stability that will bring an end to the piracy threat,” said President Michel.

Rear Admiral Potts reassured the President of the European Union’s commitment to continue monitoring and patroling the high-risk areas of the Indian Ocean, which includes the Seychelles Exclusive Economic Zone.

“We will remain vigilant and committed … Seychelles plays an extremely important part in our operation, and I am grateful for all the support we get,” said Rear Admiral Potts.

During his two-day official visit in Seychelles, Rear Admiral Potts will meet with other ministers and officials from the Seychelles People’s Defense Forces to further discuss the support that Seychelles provides to the EUNAVFOR forces in terms of basin for their maritime patrol aircraft, logistics support to their ships that operate in the Indian Ocean, and the work that the Seychelles is doing in prosecuting and incarcerating pirates as well. He will also visit the personnel working with Regional Anti-Piracy Prosecution and Intelligence Coordination Center.

Pity The Poor Pirates Again

September 8, 2012: Pirate activity declined last year, to 439 incidents compared to 445 in 2010. Africa (mainly off Somalia on the east coast and the Gulf of Guinea on the west coast) accounted for 63 percent of the attacks. But the pirates have been less successful over the last two years. In 2010, the Somali pirates seized 49 ships, compared to 28 last year (a decline of 43 percent). For example, in the last quarter there were 90 attacks off Somalia, with 21 percent of them resulting in ships taken for ransom. In the last quarter of 2011, there were only 31 attacks and only 13 percent of them were successful.

Other areas where there is piracy (mostly stealing portable items, not hijacking ships) are Bangladesh, South China Sea, and Indonesia. In most of these areas pirate activity was also declining because of more active law enforcement and more alert crews on commercial ships. Outside of Somalia, most of the piracy is basically robbing the crew of their valuables and any portable items of worth from the ship (that will fit into the pirates' small boat).

The bad-news-for-pirates trend continues into this year. The first six months of 2012, saw a 33 percent decline in attacks compared to the first half of 2010. In the first six months of 2012, twenty ships were taken for ransom. Only 13 were by Somali pirates, which was a 38 percent decline from last year. In the last two months the Somali pirates have been even less successful.

The Somali pirates are having such a hard time because so many merchant ships are carrying armed guards (who also augment the lookouts and more frequently spot and identify pirates before they get too close). The international anti-piracy patrol off Somalia has dozens of warships and maritime patrol aircraft escorting convoys of merchant ships and (from the air) tracking pirate mother ships (which are usually intercepted and destroyed by warships).

Some of the pirates on the west coast of Africa (mainly the Gulf of Guinea) have become bolder and are hijacking ships (which they mainly take only long enough to steal the cargo). This is not a new trend (it has long been common in Asia) but it is new for West Africa. There are more naval forces active in West Africa and the pirates there will not have years of freedom from retribution like the Somali pirates did. In Asia the police and coastal security forces are aware of the "take the ship, disable navigation beacon, steal cargo" scam and have made it more difficult for pirates to get away with it. China was most successful at this, mainly because most of the culprits were executed.

Despite the recent success of countermeasures, piracy is still an attractive proposition to some criminals. There are still multi-million dollar ransoms to be had for Somali pirates (the only ones on the planet with safe harbors to store their captured ships while the ransom is negotiated). So despite increased difficulty in seizing ships, thousands of Somali pirates are still out there trying.

Counter-Piracy "Big Three" Meet At Sea

Force Commanders of the three international Counter-Piracy task forces, the EU Naval Force Somalia – Operation Atalanta (EU NAVFOR), NATO Operation Ocean Shield (TF-508) and Combined Task Force 151 (CTF-151; operated by the Combined Maritime Forces – CMF) met on board the NATO flagship to exchange experience and coordinate the fight against piracy.

French EU NAVFOR Force Commander Rear Admiral Jean-Baptiste Dupuis and CTF-151 Commander Rear Admiral Anho Chung from the Republic of Korea were welcomed by Dutch NATO Commander Commodore Ben Bekkering aboard the Evertsen.

The Marne supplies the Dutch frigate Evertsen (Ocean Shield - NATO), while the Korean frigate Wang Geon (Combined Task Force 151) also took a parallel route to record the of the "big threes".

The three Counter-Piracy forces communicate and coordinate their operations on a daily basis to ensure maximum effectiveness in the deterrence, disruption and repression of piracy in the area of operation. But even in times of modern communication systems, personal contacts are important. Therefore, cross-deck meetings are organised regularly in addition to electronic forms of communication. However, this was the first simultaneous meeting at sea of the Force Commanders of the three main Counter-Piracy forces.

The three commanders discussed the strategic and tactical situation and the broader evolution of piracy since the end of 2011. The Commanders agreed that the increased pressure on Somali pirates and their business model has seen promising results but needs to be maintained. The situation in Somalia allowing for pirates to operate has not yet changed and the recent spate of successes is still reversible – there is no room for complacency.

The flagships of the three main anti-piracy forces off Somalia in the Gulf of Aden. Right to left: the Korean frigate Wang Geon (Combined Task Force 151), the FS Marne (Atalanta) and the Dutch frigate Evertsen (Ocean Shield - NATO).

Netherlands beefs up anti-piracy forces

The Netherlands will boost its military contribution to the NATO force fighting piracy in Somali waters after the country's Parliament approved funding.

The Dutch Parliament voted last week to spend $16.5 million to provide extra personnel, two Cougar helicopters and an unmanned aerial vehicle to join Operation Ocean Shield, in which NATO warships and aircraft have been patrolling the waters off the Horn of Africa.

Also part of the new deployment will be an additional submarine to join the mission in the second half of 2012, Radio Netherlands reported.

The Netherlands has committed two vessels to Operation Ocean Shield as part of the expansion of forces. They include the helicopter-carrying frigate Evertsen, which is on its way to the region, and the amphibious transport ship Rotterdam, which will carry the two Cougar helicopters as well as the drone, the national broadcaster said.

Meanwhile, the multipurpose frigate Van Amstel, which has been deployed as part of the EU's Operation Atalanta, will return to the Netherlands this month.

The mission of Operation Ocean Shield is to counter maritime piracy and build policing capacity with governments in the Horn of Africa region. It operates in conjunction with other naval forces including U.S.-led maritime forces, Operation Atalanta and national actors operating against the threat of piracy in the region.

The North Atlantic Council in March extended Operation Ocean Shield's mandate until the end of 2014.

NATO in May released new statistics on piracy in the region showing a marked decline in the number of hijacking attempts.

Officials said a five pirate hijackings were recorded over the first four months of 2012, which would put the region on a pace for 20 for the year. That's compared with 24 in 2011 and 45 each in 2010 and 2009.

But significantly, only 15 unsuccessful pirate attacks were seen between January and April -- a pace of 60 for the year -- while last year 129 such unsuccessful attacks by were recorded on shipping in the Somali Basin, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea.

As of May 11, pirates were holding eight ships with an estimated 235 hostages, NATO said.

A Dutch officer this month assumed command of Operation Ocean Shield. Commodore Ben Bekkering of the Dutch navy said the effort has been bearing fruit under the previous commander, Rear Adm. Sinan Azmi Tosun of the Turkish navy.

"On Admiral Tosun's 6-month watch, the success rate of pirates has seen a sharp decline," Bekkering said. "Pirates find it increasingly difficult to deploy from the coast and hunt at sea.

"But the many incidents over the last few months, including attacks and hijackings, make it absolutely clear that we can't let our guard down," he added. "I see it as my absolute task to ensure the trend continues and engage with all partners in the region to maximize our combined effect."

The Dutch Parliament at the same time, however, turned down an appeal from ship-owners to allow merchant ships to hire private protection forces.

Defense Minister Hans Hillen said he understood the ship-owners' position but said the government needed to retain control of armed forces at sea.

"All armed organizations have to fall under the state's responsibility to ensure accuracy and proportional measures," he told lawmakers.