The Royal Navy played a group of Somali pirates at their own game. Result: Royal Navy - 3, Pirates - Nil. Sharon Gill reports ...
Somali pirates have operated with impunity for much of the year, raking in around US$30 million in ransoms paid for the release of hijacked ships. In September, the maritime community called on governments to not only deploy their navies to patrol the Gulf of Aden region, but also to authorise them to use the necessary force to take appropriate action against these pirates, who, after all, are heavily armed themselves.
Operation Allied Provider began a month later, with NATO deploying three ships on anti-piracy patrols in the Indian Ocean.
One of these ships, the Royal Navy Warship HMS Cumberland, successfully warded off an attack by a group of pirates off the Horn of Africa on November 11th.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said that a crew from the Cumberland boarded a foreign flagged dhow, believed to be Yemeni, which had been positively identified in an earlier hijacking attempt on the Danish-registered commercial vessel - the MV Powerful.
"Prior to boarding, boats launched by Cumberland to intercept the dhow were involved in an exchange of fire. Two foreign nationals, believed to be Somali pirates, were shot and killed in self-defence. A Yemeni national was also found injured and later died despite receiving emergency treatment from the ship's doctor." He added that it was unclear whether his injuries were caused by the exchange of bullets or a previous incident involving the pirates.
A post-incident investigation is currently being conducted.
NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said that the incident demonstrates NATO's determination to play its part in deterring piracy off the Somali coast, as requested by the UN.
[Sources: NATO and Royal Navy - Ministry of Defence]
