From: Biniam Tekle (biniamt@dehai.org)
Date: Mon Sep 29 2008 - 14:01:36 EDT
US Warships Surround Hijacked Ship in Somalia By Alisha Ryu
Nairobi
*29 September 2008*
*The U.S. Navy says more American warships have been sent to the east coast
of Somalia, where a vessel carrying more than 30 tanks and other military
equipment is being held by pirates. As VOA Correspondent Alisha Ryu reports
from our East Africa Bureau in Nairobi, there are conflicting reports about
the final destination of the cargo. *
[image: Photo released by the U.S. Navy shows Somali pirates in small
boats alongside the hijacked 'Faina', 28 Sep 2008] Photo released by the
U.S. Navy shows Somali pirates in small boats alongside the hijacked
'Faina', 28 Sep 2008The U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet in Bahrain declined to say
how many of its warships are stationed off the coast of central Somalia. But
spokeswoman Lieutenant Stephanie Murdock says several have joined the Navy
destroyer USS *Howard,* which was deployed to the area earlier to keep an
eye on the hijacked MV *Faina* and its sensitive cargo.
"There are several Fifth Fleet ships currently in the vicinity of Motor
Vessel *Faina*," she said. "In addition to visual watch, they have got basic
bridge-to-bridge communication with the ship, so they are monitoring the
situation."
About 60 Somali pirates operating from the central Somali town of Haradhere
seized the Ukrainian-operated ship Thursday as it sailed toward the Kenyan
port of Mombasa.
The pirates are holding 20 Russian, Ukrainian, and Moldovan crew members, 33
Russian-built T-72 tanks, and a substantial number of rocket-propelled
grenade launchers, anti-aircraft guns and ammunition. They have demanded a
$20 million ransom for their release. The ship is believed to be anchored
about 11 kilometers off Somalia's eastern coast.
With permission from the pirates, one of the Russian hostages spoke to VOA
by satellite telephone. Identifying himself as First Mate Viktor Nikolsky,
he confirmed reports from Moscow that the ship's Russian captain Vladimir
Kolobkov has died of natural causes.
"He died due to high blood pressure," he said. "Now, I am the captain."
A Russian frigate is also heading to Somalia, amid worries that the hardware
could end up in the hands of an ambitious factional leader or militant
al-Qaida-linked Islamists, who have been waging a bloody insurgency against
Somalia's Ethiopia-backed government since 2007.
The spokesman for the Haradhere-based pirates Sugule Ali tells VOA that his
group has no intention of keeping or selling any of the ship's cargo. Ali
says they are only interested in securing the ransom. He says there can only
be two ways to resolve the stand-off - pay the ransom or watch everyone on
board die.
The Kenyan government says it purchased the tanks and arms for its military
and insists the ship's final destination was Mombasa. But the head of the
Mombasa-based Seafarers' Assistance Program Andrew Mwangura says there is
evidence to suggest that the consignment was destined for southern Sudan.
"According to our records, since October last year, there were four ships
with the same cargo, the same material and the destination of the cargo was
southern Sudan," he said.
The government of South Sudan vehemently denies it has purchased or received
any military hardware during the past year.
Southern Sudanese rebels fought a two-decade-long civil war with the
government in Khartoum before signing a peace agreement in 2005. But the
accord has not been fully implemented and tension has been rising between
the rivals in recent months.
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