Way cleared for US special ops to attack pirates lair

Times:

Pirates operating from safe havens along the Somali coast could become the target of hot-pursuit missions by American commandos for the first time, after approval was given by the United Nations Security Council to launch land and air attacks on pirate bases.

The Americans had sought a new robust mandate to attack the pirates at source to ensure that there was legal backing for chasing those who escaped confrontations at sea and headed for the safety of lawless Somalia.

Many of the most successful pirates are rich home-owners, living along the coast in a strip of expensive houses bought with the ransoms paid by shipping companies for the release of hijacked vessels.

Yesterday, in another example of the more aggressive stance taken by the international community against the pirates, the Chinese crew of a pirate-seized vessel, later aided by helicopters from a US-led maritime coalition force, fought off the would-be hijackers.

The 30 crew members of the Chinese-owned vessel, the Zhenhua 4, sailing in the Gulf of Aden, foiled the pirates by locking themselves in their cabins and radioing for help. A warship from Combined Task Force 150, an American-led naval group operating around the Horn of Africa, sent two helicopters which fired on the pirates. CTF 150, based in Bahrain, is a coalition of 20 nations, including Britain.

China, in response to yesterday's incident, was reported to be thinking seriously about sending warships into the Gulf of Aden to escort vessels and protect them from pirate attacks. If Chinese ships arrive in the region they will join an international armada that already includes warships from the US, Russia, Britain, France, Germany and Greece.

...

The band of pirates who boarded the Zhenhua 4 stayed on the vessel for several hours until the arrival of the military helicopters. “The pirates on board eventually left the ship and the master is proceeding on his course,” Noel Choong, head of the IMB piracy-reporting centre in Kuala Lumpur, said.

A bigger setback for the pirates came with the new Security Council mandate authorising land, air and sea operations against them. Condoleezza Rice, the US Secretary of State, said that the resolution, which was passed unanimously, sent a strong signal to combat the scourge of piracy.

...

The Chinese action suggest that a ships configuration can be used to thwart the pirates if quick action is taken. More importantly, the pirate base of operations is now vulnerable. All of those fancy homes may come crashing down or be on the receiving end of a special ops raid.

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