Incident: Italians take command of Atalanta

Italy has taken command of the EU's Atalanta operation from the Dutch in a change of command ceremony. Task Force 465 will be run from the newly designated flagship, Italy's Etna, "a naval replenishment and logistic support ship." (Press release, 12/13/09)

Analysis: Lynn Rival uproar endangers minister

The UK government's decision not to rescue the Lynn Rival's owners, the Chandlers, has caused a press uproar that threatens the defense minister's portfolio.

On October 29, the MoD said the Navy had found the Lynn Rival, but made no mention that the [naval vessel] Wave Knight was 50 yards away as the Chandlers were taken off it. On November 17, First Sea Lord Sir Mark Stanhope said the Wave Knight did not have 'special expertise to deal with hostage rescue'. On November 29, it emerged that the Marine rescue force was on board, despite Sir Mark's claims.

The situation is aggravated by hostage videos released by the pirates. Rachel Chandler is shown above in a video still. Lynn Rival, a sailboat, was taken 10/23/09. (Mail Online, 12/12/09)

Analysis: EU NAVFOR announces "year of success"

EU NAVFOR celebrated its first year of operations with a cake and the declaration that "This has been a period of success for EU Naval Force."

Admiral Hudson, the Operational Commander of EU NAVFOR stated that “while piracy cannot be defeated at sea alone, much is being done in Europe to bring stability to Somalia. We have been very successful in capturing pirates and pirate activity has been severely disrupted”.

Some of the highlights:

* "Sharing of information through the Shared Awareness and Deconfliction Conferences (SHADE), has been extremely successful and this cooperation is bringing together national navies not normally associated with the EU, NATO and CMF."

* "The establishment of the International Recognised Transit Corridor in the Gulf of Aden has been a great achievement in the management and provision of protection to commercial shipping transiting these dangerous waters."

* "Effective communication with the commercial shipping community has been established through the establishment of Maritime Security Centre, Horn of Africa (MSCHOA), a website system that allows EU Naval Force to provide Best Management Practice anti piracy advice to commercial shipping and information in the form of warnings and alerts of pirate threats."

* "The establishment of a secure internet based communications system called Mercury also provides connectivity between EU NAVFOR, NATO and CMF as well as an impressive array of international states such as China, India, Japan and Russia."

Oddly, the force continues to list its primary mission as defense of World Food Programme shipments, with a secondary mission "deter and disrupt piracy." Third on its list is "to protect vulnerable shipping." (Press release, 12/10/09)

Incident: Ariana released

The Greek-owned cargo ship Ariana is released after ransom payment. The Ukrainian crew of 24 was pronounced in good health by a spokesman for Alloceans Shipping, the ship's owners. Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko clled negotiations "very difficult." Unidentified pirate sources disclosed nearly $3 million was paid for the release. (BBC, 12/10/09)

The horrors of Ariana's crew in captivity were widely reported in the Spanish press and unremarked by the BBC in its new reporting. See entries under 11/22/09.

Incident: Bulk carrier fired upon, catches fire

A bulk carrier, not otherwise identified, is fired upon in the Indian Ocean about 1000 NM east of Mogadishu.

Pirates in two skiffs chased and fired automatic weapons and RPG on a bulk carrier underway because of which a fire broke out on deck. The vessel increased speed and made evasive manoeuvres and sent distress message. The crew managed to contain the fire once the skiffs moved away. Later, the skiffs aborted the attack...

(ICC/IMB Website)

Incident: Crude tanker fired upon

A crude tanker, not otherwise identified, is fired upon in the Gulf of Aden. Two skiffs had pursued their quarry before opening up with automatic weapons. The tanker successfully applied evasive action.

Incident: Fishing vessel taken

A fishing vessel with 29 crew is hijacked in the Indian Ocean about 1020 NM northeast of Mogadishu. No details. (ICC/IMB Website)

Incident: General cargo vessel fired upon

A general cargo vessel, not otherwise identified, is fired upon in the Gulf of Aden. The ship's crew "spotted a mother vessel at a distance of 6nm. The mother vessel was seen to launch two skiffs, which approached the vessel at a speed of 14 knots." the intended victim radioed for help. "The skiff on port side approached the vessel close to 15 meters and fired automatic weapons. Ten minutes later, the skiff aborted the attempt and regrouped with the mother vessel." (ICC/IMB Website)

Incident: Crude tanker fired upon

A crude tanker, not otherwise identified, is fired upon in the Indian Ocean about 1200 NM northeast of Mogadishu.

Pirates in a skiff armed with guns chased and opened fire on a tanker underway. The pirates attempted to board from port side but failed and then tried to board from stbd side. The use of water jets from fire hoses and evasive manoeuvres made the pirates abort the attempt.

(ICC/IMB Website)

Incident: Maran Centaurus taken

The Greek-owned tanker Maran Centaurus is captured 800 NM east of Somalia with a load of oil worth $140 million. (Wikipedia, "List of ships attacked by Somali pirates," 12/31/09)

It was en route from Saudi Arabia to the USA and taken by a party of nine men. "The 28 crewmen are safe and well according to a spokesman from the Greek managing company, Maran Tankers Management." (The Times, 12/01/09)

Incident: Ortube Berria chased, fights back

The Spanish fishing ship Ortube Berria is chased for half an hour in the Indian Ocean by pirates in two skiffs armed with rifles and rocket propelled grenades. "They would not give up. They simply would not give up," the captain said. "If we had not been armed, they would have caught us." Security guards fired upon the pirates, causing them to break off the attack. (AP, 12/02/09)

Incident: Container ship fired upon

A container ship, not otherwise identified, is fired upon in the Indian Ocean about 470 NM off Mogadishu.

Pirates armed with RPG and machine guns in two skiffs chased and fired upon a container ship underway with intent to hijack her. Master raised alarm, activated SSAS, increased speed and took evasive manoeuvres. The pirates continued to chase and fire at the ship for around three hours before aborting. No injuries to crew.

(ICC/IMB Website)

Incident: Crude tanker fired upon

A crude tanker, not otherwise identified, is fired upon in the Indian Ocean about 100 NM east of Mogadishu. "Four pirates in a skiff fired upon and attempted to board a tanker underway. Ship sustained damages on stbd side of wheelhouse window. Pirates aborted the attempt after about 35 minutes of chasing. No injuries to crew." (ICC/IMB Website)

Incident: Horrors on Ariana reported

The captain of the Spanish trawler Alakrana, Ricardo Blach, released 11/17/09 by pirates, "said he is haunted by his failure to save a 12-year-old Ukrainian girl held captive for more than six months."

During his captivity, Blach boarded a second vessel, the cargo ship Ariana, to hand over supplies including medicines and fuel. Somali pirates have been holding the Ariana with its Ukrainian crew for around half a year. On board the ship, Blach saw the blue-eyed Ukrainian girl with her mother and her father, who was a member of the ship's crew. "Her mother begged me to take (her daughter) with me," Blach wrote in his logbook. "I told her that I couldn't. On her ship, the Ariana, there were 12 pirates. On mine, the Alakrana, 30," he said, adding: "I have not stopped thinking about this girl, about the women in this boat."

(AFP, 11/22/09)

In a compilation of Spanish press reports, Wikipedia adds the following details:

One of the abducted women, Larisa Salinska, 39 years old ship's cook, was raped by pirates. Then she had a miscarriage (it is unknown if she became pregnant as a result of the rape or not) with a large hemorrhage, heavy infection, and serious health problems. The Alakrana’s skipper tried to convey to the Ariana medicines to help Salinska, but Adan Jama, one of the pirates who had hijacked the Spanish ship, threw overboard those medicines. Also, according to the testimony ... the girl wich twelve years old was raped by a pirate...

(Wikipedia, "List of ships attacked by Somali pirates," 12/31/09)

Incident: Almezaan released

The Panama-flagged cargo ship Al Mezaan, taken 11/11, is released by Somali pirates. "It was claimed that it was carrying weapons but this was denied by her owners. A $3,000,000 dollar ransom was demanded, but a lower amount was paid." (Wikipedia, "List of ships attacked by Somali pirates," 12/31/09)