Pirataria na costa Africana

[soultrain]

A nossa Corte-Real, acabou de repelir um ataque a um cargueiro.

[cabeça de martelo]

[quote="macer"]A fragata Portuguesa Corte Real foi atingida por um Roquete, em operação de combate à pirataria ao largo da Somália
O Roquete não chegou a explodir, e não há noticia de estragos de monta nem de vitimas entre os militares portugueses. São cinco navios que operam sob comando da Nato e que vão patrulhar e escoltar navios que cruzam o Indico e que diariamente tem sido alvo dos piratas.

http://tv1.rtp.pt/noticias/?headline=20 ... cle=213233

[cabeça de martelo]

Standing NATO Maritime Group ONE (SNMG1)

[PQD]

França ataca piratas e refém morre

Comandos invadem iate sequestrado na Somália. Capitão dos EUA tenta fugir e é recapturado

MOGADÍSCIO



Terminou com a morte de um refém uma operação cinematográfica de forças especiais francesas que tentavam resgatar pessoas sequestradas num iate por piratas da Somália. A missão ocorreu horas depois que um capitão americano que é mantido como refém por outros piratas da região tentara, sem sucesso, fugir de seus captores nadando - e num momento em que a tensão cresce, pois os Estados Unidos enviaram um barco de assalto anfíbio e os criminosos do mar estão enviando reforços em barcos com dezenas de reféns de diversas nacionalidades.

A operação de resgate francesa durou seis minutos. Uma equipe de comandos invadiu o veleiro Tanit, no qual dois casais e uma criança de 3 anos estavam em poder de piratas. Segundo o governo da França, dois criminosos foram mortos e três, presos.

- Durante a operação, um refém, Florent Lemacon, infelizmente encontrou a sua morte - afirmou o ministro da Defesa da França, Hervé Morin. - Os outros quatro, inclusive a criança, estão sãos e salvos. O governo oferece as condolências à sua família e amigos, e compartilha de sua dor.

Segundo Morin, os piratas mortos estavam no convés na hora da invasão, enquanto Lemacon estava na cabine. Não está claro se ele foi assassinado pelos captores ou se morreu devido ao fogo cruzado.

A missão de resgate ocorreu após dois dias de tensão. Depois do sequestro, a embarcação foi cercada pela Marinha francesa. Ontem, os piratas cortaram as negociações e tentaram furar o bloqueio. O governo diz que eles ameaçaram matar os reféns, o que teria levado à decisão da abordagem.

- Propusemos tudo o que pudemos a eles, permitindo que eles voltassem para a terra firme. Chegamos a oferecer até o pagamento de um resgate - afirmou o ministro Morin.

A França adota uma postura de não permitir que cidadãos seus sequestrados em alto-mar sejam levados para terra por seus captores. Morin confirmou esta política:

- A França jamais aceitará a chantagem de piratas ou de terroristas.

Esta conduta já levou a seis ações militares na conturbada costa da Somália nos últimos meses. A França aprisionou 51 piratas.

O casal dono do barco - Florent e Chloé Lemacon - fora alertado pelas autoridades a não navegar pela região. Ainda assim, partiu do Djibuti com destino ao arquipélago tanzaniano de Zanzibar, levando o filho, Colin. Durante a viagem, um casal embarcou.

Em recente entrevista ao jornal "Ouest France", Florent afirmara que decidira fazer a viagem para "escapar da sociedade de consumo".



Piratas levam mais 54 reféns para área

Em outro ponto da costa da Somália, a tensão aumentou muito depois da tentativa frustrada do capitão do barco mercante Maersk Alabama, o americano Richard Phillips, de fugir a nado durante a noite do bote salva-vidas em que é mantido refém. Os piratas atiraram e ele voltou. Os tripulantes de um destróier americano que acompanha o bote não reagiram a tempo. O navio de guerra USS Boxer, especializado em assalto anfíbio e nau capitânia da força-tarefa antipirata na região, foi enviado para a área. O resgate exigido por Phillips seria de US$2 milhões.

Ao mesmo tempo, os piratas somalis anunciaram que estão enviando quatro barcos com homens fortemente armados como reforços para os colegas sequestradores. Num desdobramento que pode transformar o impasse numa crise internacional, as embarcações, na verdade, são barcos sequestrados com 54 reféns - cidadãos de Alemanha, Rússia, China, Ucrânia, Filipinas, Indonésia, Taiwan e Tuvalu.

Um líder pirata em terra - que forneceu apenas o primeiro nome - confirmou o envio de reforços.

- Não pretendemos ferir o capitão. Assim, esperamos que nossos colegas não sejam feridos enquanto estiverem bloqueados com o capitão - disse Badow. - O que precisamos, primeiro, é uma rota segura de fuga com o capitão, e, depois, negociar um resgate.

[cabeça de martelo]

Afinal o RPG não foi disparado contra a Fragata Portuguesa.

Piratas lançam ataque contra navio no raio de acção de fragata portuguesa
Hoje às 13:38
Piratas somalis lançaram um ataque contra um cargueiro ao largo de Golfo de Aden e que estava no raio de acção de uma fragata portuguesa que se encontra no local. Fontes da NATO dizem que chegaram a ser disparados tiros contra o navio de pavilhão panamiano.
Piratas somalis atacaram, este sábado, um cargueiro de bandeira pananiama que no raio de acção da fragata portuguesa Corte-Real, no Golfo de Aden, tendo mesmo sido disparado tiros contra o MV Anatolia, afirmaram fontes da NATO, citadas pela agência Reuters.

Stephan Gresmak explicou que os oito piratas armados com metralhadoras AK-47 que, procuravam um alvo fácil ao atacarem o MV Anatolia, de pavilhão panamiano, acabaram por ser afastados graças ao uso de canhões de água.

«Numa inspecção feita mais tarde, o oficial comandante viu buracos feitos por tiros na superestrutura do barco», acrescentou este oficial, que disse que foi encontrada uma granada que não chegou a explodir na embarcação de pavilhão panamiano.

Este comandante disse também que o MV Anatolia terá também conseguido minimizar a acção dos piratas devido a manobras evasivas.

http://tsf.sapo.pt/PaginaInicial/Intern ... id=1199071

[cabeça de martelo]

By Alison Bevege

ON BOARD NRP CORTE-REAL, April 11 (Reuters) - As acrid, choking fumes from a smoke grenade fill the lower deck of a Portuguese warship, the crew scramble into protective equipment to battle the "blaze".


The bi-weekly drill aboard the escort frigate Corte-Real, patrolling the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden, is vital to defend against the risk of either fire or suicide attack, like that which hit the USS Cole off the coast of nearby Yemen in 2000.


The Corte-Real joined the fight against Somali pirates after leaving the Omani port of Salalah on Wednesday evening, and its crew are proud to be part of Portugal's first such operation.


"We were the first ones to do a mission like this. It's going to be remembered," said Ricardo, a 28-year-old communications operator.


The escort frigate is operating under the command of NATO's Operation Allied Protector and is the flagship of a fleet of five international vessels.


Ship's captain Antonio Alexandre, 44, has no doubts about the strategic importance of the shipping route that runs through the Gulf of Aden to the Suez Canal, linking Europe to Asia.


"This region is one of the most important sea lines of communication in the world," he said.


The Corte-Real began her mission by escorting a convoy of two cargo vessels and a yacht through a designated safety corridor on Thursday.


All vessels in the area were invited to join the convoy, particularly slow-moving ships of 10 knots with low decks that are easy prey for the heavily-armed pirates in their skiffs, Alexandre said.


On Friday afternoon they handed their charges to NATO's Spanish frigate ESPS Blas de Lezo and began patrolling open waters, looking for trouble.


Equipped with a helicopter, heavy machine guns, high-speed intercept craft and missiles, the escort frigate is considered an ideal tool for the task. With a top speed of 32 knots, it is faster and more mobile than a big destroyer.





PIRATE OR FISHERMAN?


If a suspicious blip is picked up by the powerful radars being scanned 24 hours a day in the ship's nerve centre, the operations room, the helicopter is sent to investigate.


And if the vessel continues to behave suspiciously, the crew monitor it further, finally sending a high-speed, rigid-hulled inflatable boat to intercept and investigate, the captain said.


Pirates are indistinguishable from local fishermen, often until the point at which they launch an attack. Sinking an innocent fishing vessel would be a disaster so the Corte-Real must be certain before it takes action.


But the mission is dangerous for the crew. Heavily-armed Somali pirates can launch RPGs at the helicopter or spray bullets from their AK-47s at the sailors sitting exposed in the inflatable boat.


"We don't know what will be the reaction of the pirates," said Captain Alexandre. "When we send our people they are protected but we must expect the unexpectable."


The pirates are not the only unpredictable element Alexandre must face. He must abide by a raft of regulations, navigating his crew through NATO's rules of engagement while keeping to Portuguese laws as well.


To complicate the situation, a panoply of vessels from three treaty organisations and many other countries have descended on the Gulf looking to protect their trading interests. Merchant vessels have taken to hiring their own mercenaries.


All operate under different rules of engagement and speak a babel of languages, making communication a huge challenge.

"Integration is still missing," he said. "We should do something more to integrate the ships, but with so many different regions, countries and languages it is difficult to co-ordinate operations in such a large theatre of operations."


To cope with the scale of the task the crew maintain a constant state of readiness.


In the operations room and on the bridge, crew members like Principal Warfare Officer Underwater Joao Simoes take it in turns to work six hours on and six hours off, seven days a week.


Simoes said he averages four hours sleep between shifts. "But we can handle it, we are tough guys and tough women," he said.


Escorting ships and patrolling the region with warships is expensive for the international community.


But the International Maritime Bureau reports that 260 crew members from around the globe are being held hostage for ransom and there is no end in sight to Somalia's turmoil.


"There is a price for this," said Captain Alexandre. "It is very expensive to send ships. But what is the alternative --doing nothing?"

Portuguese crew aboard the warship NRP Corte-Real practice fire-fighting drills in the belly of the ship in the high seas of Indian Ocean off the Somalia coastline, April 10, 2009. As acrid, choking fumes from a smoke grenade fill the lower deck of a Portuguese warship, the crew scramble into protective equipment to battle the "blaze". The bi-weekly drill aboard the escort frigate Corte-Real, patrolling the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden, is vital to defend against the risk of either fire or suicide attack, like that which hit the USS Cole off the coast of nearby Yemen in 2000. The Corte-Real joined the fight against Somali pirates after leaving the Omani port of Salalah on Wednesday evening, and its crew are proud to be part of Portugal's first such operation. Picture taken April 10, 2009

Portuguese crew aboard the warship NRP Corte-Real play cards in a bar deep within the belly of the ship in the high seas of Indian Ocean off the Somalia coastline, April 10, 2009, as they enjoy a few hours of recreation. As acrid, choking fumes from a smoke grenade fill the lower deck of a Portuguese warship, the crew scramble into protective equipment to battle the "blaze". The bi-weekly drill aboard the escort frigate Corte-Real, patrolling the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden, is vital to defend against the risk of either fire or suicide attack, like that which hit the USS Cole off the coast of nearby Yemen in 2000. The Corte-Real joined the fight against Somali pirates after leaving the Omani port of Salalah on Wednesday evening, and its crew are proud to be part of Portugal's first such operation. Picture taken April 10, 2009

Portuguese warship NRP Cortte-Real is seen docked In the sea port city of Salalah in Oman, April 4, 2009. Portugal has become the latest of more than a dozen nations to join the fight against Somali pirates, sending an escort frigate to the world's most dangerous waterway. The importance of their work has been driven home this week with the first seizure of an American hostage by Somali pirates. Picture taken April 4, 2009

Portuguese crew aboard the warship NRP Corte-Real sun themselves on the deck in the high seas of Indian Ocean off the Somalia coastline, April 10, 2009, as they their time off work for recreation. As acrid, choking fumes from a smoke grenade fill the lower deck of a Portuguese warship, the crew scramble into protective equipment to battle the "blaze". The bi-weekly drill aboard the escort frigate Corte-Real, patrolling the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden, is vital to defend against the risk of either fire or suicide attack, like that which hit the USS Cole off the coast of nearby Yemen in 2000. The Corte-Real joined the fight against Somali pirates after leaving the Omani port of Salalah on Wednesday evening, and its crew are proud to be part of Portugal's first such operation. Picture taken April 10, 2009.

[cabeça de martelo]

Fotos dos Franceses que entretanto foram libertados pelas Forças Especiais Francesas:

[Pereira]

Não filmaram a ação ?

[Carlos Mathias]

Acho que um refén morreu...

[Dieneces]

Da distância dessa objetiva dá pra um(s) sniper apagar todos esses piratas...começando pelo detrás....

[zela]

Captain jumps overboard, SEALs shoot pirates, official says

(CNN) -- The American cargo ship captain held hostage by pirates jumped overboard Sunday from the lifeboat where he was being held, and U.S. Navy SEALs shot and killed three of his four captors, according to a senior U.S. official with knowledge of the situation.
Capt. Richard Phillips, right, stands with U.S. Navy Cmdr. Frank Castellano after Phillips' rescue Sunday.

Capt. Richard Phillips was helped out of the water off the Somali coast and is uninjured and in good condition, the official said. He was taken aboard the USS Bainbridge, a nearby naval warship, and later flown to the USS Boxer, where he was "resting comfortably," the U.S. Navy said.

At the time of the shootings, the fourth pirate was aboard the Bainbridge negotiating with officials, the source said. That pirate was taken into custody.

Phillips was rescued at 7:19 p.m. (12:19 p.m. ET), according to the Navy.

Phillips, who was taken hostage Wednesday after the pirates hijacked the ship he captained, the Maersk Alabama, has contacted his family and received a routine medical exam, the U.S. Navy Central Command said in a statement.

Maersk Line Limited, owner of the Maersk Alabama, issued a statement saying it was informed at 1:30 p.m. by the U.S. government that he had been rescued. John Reinhart, president and CEO, called Phillips' wife, Andrea, to tell her the good news.

Maersk Alabama crew members, who retook the ship from the pirates last week, were "jubilant" when they received word of the rescue, the statement says.

"We are all absolutely thrilled to learn that Richard is safe and will be re-united with his family," Reinhart said. "Maersk Line Limited is deeply grateful to the Navy, the FBI and so many others for their tireless efforts to secure Richard's freedom."

"We look forward to welcoming him home in the coming days," Reinhart added.

A man who answered the door at Phillips' home in Underhill, Vermont, on Sunday afternoon told CNN's Stephanie Elam that the family had known the news for hours. He said details would have to come from Virginia, apparently referring to Maersk's home base in Norfolk. Video Watch community's reaction to Phillips' rescue »

On Saturday, the FBI launched a criminal investigation into Wednesday's hijacking of the U.S.-flagged cargo ship by Somali pirates, two law enforcement officials told CNN. The probe will be led by the FBI's New York field office, which is responsible for looking into cases involving U.S. citizens in the African region, the officials said.

Snippets of information started to emerge Saturday about how the Maersk Alabama's crew managed to retake the ship after it was hijacked by pirates Wednesday about 350 miles off the coast of Somalia in the Indian Ocean.

The Alabama reached port in Mombasa, Kenya, on Saturday. Crew members aboard the freed cargo ship described how some of their colleagues attempted to "jump" their pirate captors.

A scuffle ensued and one of the sailors stabbed a pirate in the hand in the battle to retake the container ship, one of the sailors told CNN.

Crew members smiled broadly as they stood on the ship's deck under the watchful eyes of security teams. Although the crew was kept away from the media, CNN's Stan Grant got close enough to ask crew members what happened after the pirates climbed aboard the ship.

One crew member said he recalled being awakened around 7 a.m. as the hijacking began. View a timeline of the attack and its aftermath »

"I was scared," Grant quoted the man as saying.

Some of the crew managed to hide in a secure part of the Alabama as the pirates stormed the ship, the sailor said.

As the sailors described their clash with the pirates, a crew member pointed to one shipmate and said, "This guy is a hero. He and the chief engineer, they took down the pirate. ... He led him down there to the engine room and then they jumped him."

The shipmate added that he stabbed the pirate's hand and tied him up.

"Capt. Phillips is a hero," another crew member shouted from the deck of the freed ship.
advertisement

An earlier attempt by Phillips to escape from the 28-foot covered lifeboat was thwarted by a pirate, who dove into the Indian Ocean after him. Phillips' captors appear to have tied him up afterward, Pentagon officials said.

Maersk CEO Reinhart told reporters Saturday that the crew will stay on board in Mombasa while the FBI conducts an investigation.

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/afric ... index.html

[soultrain]

13 Abril 2009 - 09h01
Após libertação de capitão de navio dos EUA
Piratas prometem vingança
O chefe dos piratas somalis que sequestraram durante cinco dias o capitão norte-americano Richard Phillips prometeu esta segunda-feira vingar a morte dos três homens abatidos durante a operação de resgate da Marinha dos EUA.

'Esses mentirosos americanos mataram os nossos amigos que tinham aceitado libertar o refém sem pagamento de resgate, mas este caso vai levar a medidas de retaliação e vamos perseguir em especial os cidadãos americanos que viajarem nas nossas águas', afirmou o chefe deste grupo de piratas, Abdi Garad.

'Não é o fim do mundo. Vamos intensificar os ataques, mesmo muito longe das águas somalis e, a próxima vez que apanharmos um americano, espero que não estejam à espera de alguma piedade da nossa parte', ameaçou Garad.

O capitão do ‘Maersk Alabama' foi libertado ontem das mãos dos piratas que o detinham num bote salva-vidas no Oceano Índico. Durante a operação da Marinha norte-americana, três dos sequestradores foram mortos e um quarto capturado.

[Moccelin]

Sinceramente? Graaaaande novidade... Simplesmente deram a eles a desculpa que precisavam para intensificar o terrorismo ao povo norte-americano.

[Bolovo]

Tem que metralhar esses caras.

Grande trabalho dos Seal's.

[cabeça de martelo]

http://www.marinha.pt/revista/index.asp ... fault.html