SEALs kill pirates as Captain escapes

CNN:

The American captain of a cargo ship held hostage by pirates jumped overboard 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 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.

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.

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Crew members from the ship, the Maersk Alabama, were "jubilant" when they received word, 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."

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This is great news. I'm glad to see the SEALs were allowed to do their job. Hopefully the "negotiator" will not be released. It has been a bad few days for the pirate kind. It had looked like the Obama administration was going to go the lawfare route. Hopefully that will not be the case.

The BBC also has a report on the Captain's escape.

The NY Times reports that the pirate in custody actually surrendered after a brief skirmish.

Fox News reports that the Seals shot the pirates with sniper rifles from the deck of the Bainbridge as the Captain jumped overboard. That is how I suggested they deal with the pirates when he first tried such an escape. They were ready this time and did their job.