S. Korean Navy frees hijacked cargo ship, kills Somali pirates

[xomputer]

S. Korean Navy frees hijacked cargo ship, kills Somali pirates

South Korean naval special forces successfully rescued 21 seamen and their South Korean-operated cargo ship that was hijacked last week by Somali pirates in an operation that left eight Somali pirates dead, Seoul's military officials said Friday.

"Our special forces stormed the hijacked Samho Jewelry earlier today and freed all hostages," said Col. Lee Bung-woo, a spokesman at South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff.

"During the operation, our forces killed some Somali pirates and all of the hostages were confirmed alive," Lee told reporters.

The South Korean skipper of the ship suffered a gunshot wound to his stomach during the operation, but his condition is not life-threatening, Lee said.

The unprecedented rescue operation by the South Korean Navy SEAL forces, which had been top secret since it started early this week, ended a seven-day ordeal for the crew of the 11,500-ton Samho Jewelry, which was hijacked last Saturday in the Arabian Sea when it was en route to Sri Lanka from the United Arab Emirates.

The rescue operation took place in high seas about 1,300 kilometers off northeast Somalia, Lee said.

Friday's rescue operation came after a brief gun battle on Tuesday when the South Korean destroyer Choi Young, pursuing the Samho Jewelry, detected Somali pirates who apparently got off the vessel to hijack a Mongolian vessel nearby.

The South Korean special forces aboard a fast-sailing navy boat and a Lynx helicopter were dispatched to rescue the Mongolian vessel, sparking the gun battle.

Tuesday's firefight left several pirates missing, and they are believed to have been killed, but their bodies have not been found, the official said. Three South Korean soldiers suffered minor injuries and were sent to a hospital in Oman.

"Three of our soldiers suffered light scratches on their bodies as they were fired upon by pirates on Tuesday," Lee said. "Our Lynx helicopter immediately returned fire and several pirates fell into the waters. We believe they are dead."

Since Tuesday, a standoff between the South Korean destroyer and the Somali pirates had continued. An Omanese navy ship arrived at the scene of confrontation to support the rescue operation.

 

[Blagger]

This is all very well and certainly very encouraging, but it really isn't much compared to what the Russian navy did last summer. Capture, arrest and bring them to justice? No, that's far too leniant! No, they just sailed-out to the middle of the Indian Ocean and set them adrift with no food or water. On inquiring on the Somali pirates' fate after being captured by the Russian Navy, the captain simply shrugged and calmly announced to the world's media: "They're probably dead by now."

Russian Navy Abandons Somali Pirates and Condemn Them To An Agonising Fate. Oh Well, Tough Shit, Comrade - BBC

 

[Old Rocks]

The Russians have very unpleasant ways of dealing with extremely unpleasant people. Remember when one of the Palistinean groups kidnapped some Russians, and the Russians sent a very unpleasant message to the leader of that group?

 

[editec]

A privateer was a private person or private warship authorized by a country's government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping. Privateers were only entitled by their state to attack and rob enemy vessels during wartime. Privateers were part of naval warfare of some nations from the 16th to the 19th century. The crew of a privateer might be treated as prisoners of war by the enemy country if captured. The costs of commissioning privateers was borne by investors hoping to gain a significant return from prize money earned from enemy merchants.

O yeah...those Somali pirates are really bad, aren't they?

Wonder what percentage of the Gold of England and the USA came into our coffers from piracy?

A LOT I'll wager.

Of course that was then and this is now, right?

 

[martybegan]

A privateer was a private person or private warship authorized by a country's government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping. Privateers were only entitled by their state to attack and rob enemy vessels during wartime. Privateers were part of naval warfare of some nations from the 16th to the 19th century. The crew of a privateer might be treated as prisoners of war by the enemy country if captured. The costs of commissioning privateers was borne by investors hoping to gain a significant return from prize money earned from enemy merchants.

O yeah...those Somali pirates are really bad, aren't they?

Wonder what percentage of the Gold of England and the USA came into our coffers from piracy?

A LOT I'll wager.

Of course that was then and this is now, right?

Even then there was a difference between a pirate and a privateer, the most notable being a country giving them the letter, and that country being a war with the victim's country. You also went to a prize court in the country of which you got the letter of marque, and they decided to whom went the prize money.

During the war of 1812 both sides lost money to privateers.

Pirates were usually just killed even back then.

 

[Blagger]

A privateer was a private person or private warship authorized by a country's government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping. Privateers were only entitled by their state to attack and rob enemy vessels during wartime. Privateers were part of naval warfare of some nations from the 16th to the 19th century. The crew of a privateer might be treated as prisoners of war by the enemy country if captured. The costs of commissioning privateers was borne by investors hoping to gain a significant return from prize money earned from enemy merchants.

O yeah...those Somali pirates are really bad, aren't they?

Wonder what percentage of the Gold of England and the USA came into our coffers from piracy?

A LOT I'll wager.

Of course that was then and this is now, right?

1. Yeah, but they don't wear swish looking uniforms or get glamorized by Hollywood. Tough break, huh.

2. Yes, England/Britain certainly plundered and burnt its fair share of shipping; but it made the majority of its wealth from colonizing/invading foreign lands and stripping them of their natural and mineral resources. America prospered largely from slavery and the tobacco and other exotic goods it exported to Europe. America also benifited from annexing Indian lands and subsequently exploiting them for their natural and mineral worth. But I can't get too pious, it was the British that taught them how to do it.

3. Yeah, that was then and now is now. Besides, they didn't have a broadband connection to rat on the chaps that pinched their cargo.

Anyway, back to modern-day swashbuckling and skullduggery...

Can Somali pirates swim? What with them being malnourished, ignorant peasants.

 

[sekoumortimer]

Can someone tell my why there is a Mongolian vessel in the Indian Ocean, or anywhere else for that matter? ("Friday's rescue operation came after a brief gun battle on Tuesday when the South Korean destroyer Choi Young, pursuing the Samho Jewelry, detected Somali pirates who apparently got off the vessel to hijack a Mongolian vessel nearby.") Mongolia was still a landlocked country, last I checked, and I am somewhat surprised that Mongols are out there sailing the seven seas.

 

[martybegan]

Even if countries are landlocked they can have sea access via rivers with agreements between them and other countries. They could also have basing rights with these other countries allowing them to use ports that connect to thier own territory via rail or road network. In Mongolia's case this is probably via their railroad connection to the trans siberian railroad, and Vladivostock.

 

[High_Gravity]

The Russians have very unpleasant ways of dealing with extremely unpleasant people. Remember when one of the Palistinean groups kidnapped some Russians, and the Russians sent a very unpleasant message to the leader of that group?

No, what happened?

 

[martybegan]

The Russians have very unpleasant ways of dealing with extremely unpleasant people. Remember when one of the Palistinean groups kidnapped some Russians, and the Russians sent a very unpleasant message to the leader of that group?

No, what happened?

I think it involved the russians capturing a senior palestinian and then mailing said palestinian back to his cohorts one piece at a time until the russian victim was released.

I think they started with the fingers.

 

[High_Gravity]

The Russians have very unpleasant ways of dealing with extremely unpleasant people. Remember when one of the Palistinean groups kidnapped some Russians, and the Russians sent a very unpleasant message to the leader of that group?

No, what happened?

I think it involved the russians capturing a senior palestinian and then mailing said palestinian back to his cohorts one piece at a time until the russian victim was released.

I think they started with the fingers.

Wow, yeh the Russians don't fuck around.

 

[Blagger]

No, what happened?

I think it involved the russians capturing a senior palestinian and then mailing said palestinian back to his cohorts one piece at a time until the russian victim was released.

I think they started with the fingers.

Wow, yeh the Russians don't fuck around.

They certainly don't, but this hostage 'situation' ended very badly for the hostage takers, very badly, actually.

In 1985 four Soviet diplomats were taken hostage in Beirut, Lebanon, by Sunni militants. What these Sunni militants didn't take into consideration was that on hearing of the diplomats' kidnapping, the Kremlin dispatched a very shadowy, but equally terrifying special forces (Spetznaz) unit known as the Alpha Group to go in and rescue the diplomats.

During the negotiations, which were in fact a stalling technique, because the Soviet Union had a policy of not negotiating with groups that threatened its security or citizens, KGB personnel were identifying relatives of the hostage takers and tasked the Alpha Group to kidnap the families of the kidnappers. The Alpha Group then proceeded to butcher the kidnappers' relatives and mail the kidnappers the body parts of their relatives. In the early '90s it was implied that two of the victims of the Russian special forces were actually two very small children.

Suffice to say that no Russian citizen was taken hostage for twenty years in the Middle East until 2006 when Russian nationals were taken hostage in Iraq.

 

[High_Gravity]

I think it involved the russians capturing a senior palestinian and then mailing said palestinian back to his cohorts one piece at a time until the russian victim was released.

I think they started with the fingers.

Wow, yeh the Russians don't fuck around.

They certainly don't, but this hostage 'situation' ended very badly for the hostage takers, very badly, actually.

In 1985 four Soviet diplomats were taken hostage in Beirut, Lebanon, by Sunni militants. What these Sunni militants didn't take into consideration was that on hearing of the diplomats' kidnapping, the Kremlin dispatched a very shadowy, but equally terrifying special forces (Spetznaz) unit known as the Alpha Group to go in and rescue the diplomats.

During the negotiations, which were in fact a stalling technique, because the Soviet Union had a policy of not negotiating with groups that threatened its security or citizens, KGB personnel were identifying relatives of the hostage takers and tasked the Alpha Group to kidnap the families of the kidnappers. The Alpha Group then proceeded to butcher the kidnappers' relatives and mail the kidnappers the body parts of their relatives. In the early '90s it was implied that two of the victims of the Russian special forces were actually two very small children.

Suffice to say that no Russian citizen was taken hostage for twenty years in the Middle East until 2006 when Russian nationals were taken hostage in Iraq.

Thanks for sharing this, sounds like a very effective way of dealing with terrorists.