pirates

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Pirates Hijack Saudi Oil Tanker
 Pirates Hijack Saudi Oil Tanker 

Pirates Hijack Saudi Oil Tanker

Ship loaded with oil is taken to Somalian port

(Newser) - Pirates flying the Liberian flag hijacked a Saudi Arabian oil tanker today, the BBC reports. The Sirius Star is now bound for the port of Eyl, Somalia, a common destination for pirates to unload their booty. Currently holding its full load of 2 million barrels, the Sirius Star contains one-quarter...

Somali Pirates Could Grinch Your Christmas

Shipping companies may eschew Suez Canal for longer routes, meaning delays

(Newser) - Attacks by Somali pirates have major shippers considering changing routes that run through the Suez Canal, Reuters reports, a move would add weeks to the time it takes ships to get to Europe from Asia and the Middle East. “It will really hit home when consumers in the West...

Off Somalia's Shores and On, Piracy Is the New Law

Though international forces are mobilizing, little stands in way of buccaneers on land

(Newser) - In lawless, destitute Somalia, there’s only one industry booming: piracy. Its shipping lanes have become the world’s most treacherous, with attacks tripling the past 3 years. And though Somali officials decry the attacks, the industry is hardly underground. The New York and Los Angeles Times visited Somalia’s...

Blackwater Steps Up to Take on Somali Pirates

Offers its services in battling piracy epidemic

(Newser) - As Somalia seeks private help in battling its piracy problem, security contractor Blackwater has offered its services, Wired reports. “As a company founded and run by former Navy SEALs, with a 50,000-person database of former military and law enforcement professionals, Blackwater is uniquely positioned to assist the shipping...

Both Campaigns Walk the Plank
Both Campaigns Walk the Plank

Both Campaigns Walk the Plank

McCain, Obama agree on one thing: favorite childhood Halloween costume

(Newser) - Beware, trick or treaters: John McCain and Barack Obama may be hiding behind that bandanna and eyepatch. Asked about their favorite childhood Halloween costumes in separate interviews for Nickelodeon, both candidates answered "pirate," the Chicago Sun-Times reports. Obama called his getup "the best costume of all time....

Deal Close on Ship: Somali Pirates

Ukrainian vessel, crew could be free tomorrow if ransom agreement is reached

(Newser) - A ransom deal could come as soon as tomorrow for the crew of the Ukrainian freighter being held by pirates off the coast of Somalia, AFP reports. The ship, with 21 crewmembers and tanks and other military materials as cargo, was taken over Sept. 25 and is currently surrounded by...

Somali Standoff Continues as Nations Move to Fight Piracy

EU plans force to combat maritime criminals, who took $30M in ransom in '08

(Newser) - With pirates still holding a munitions-laden ship off Somalia’s coast, the European Union plans a security force to crack down on maritime crime in the area, the BBC reports. The US Navy has surrounded the MV Faina to ensure the weapons aboard are not given to terrorists, and Somalia...

Pirates Discuss Ransom for Arms Shipment

But demands diminish as international noose appears to tighten

(Newser) - The Somali pirates who hijacked a Ukranian ship carrying a weapons shipment are in ransom negotiations with the vessel’s owners, the BBC reports. No governments are involved in the talks, sources said. The pirates seem to be flexible: They initially asked for a $35 million ransom, then $20 million,...

Somali Pirates: Uh, Hey, We're 'Misunderstood'

No plans to sell weapons to Islamists

(Newser) - The Somali pirates currently surrounded by US warships aboard a Ukrainian weapons freighter say they didn’t mean to steal the massive heavy weaponry shipment, they tell the New York Times, calling in by satellite phone. “We just saw a big ship,” said the leader. “So we...

3 Pirates Killed in In-Fighting Aboard Hijacked Tanker

Defiant Somali pirates demand $20M for cargo of tanks, weapons

(Newser) - Three pirates were killed today as in-fighting broke out aboard a hijacked Ukranian tanker, reports the Guardian. Tensions about what to do with the tanker, its crew, and the 33 tanks aboard it rose yesterday as American destroyers and cruisers continued to move in to ensure that the weapons—bound...

Talk Like a Pirate Today, Matey, Or Walk the Plank!

You know you were waiting for an excuse to get your Jolly Roger on

(Newser) - Ahoy, matey! Today is International Talk Like a Pirate Day, the Detroit Free Press reports—though the good fortune of falling on a Friday has some wannabe swashbucklers set for a weekend of buccaneering behavior. Initially a joke between two friends, the holiday got national exposure when Dave Barry mentioned...

UN Boosts Members' Powers to Fight Africa Piracy

Navy vessels can follow hijackers into Somali waters

(Newser) - With piracy a growing problem off the Horn of Africa, the UN will allow its members to combat pirates using “all necessary means,” including chasing them into Somali waters, CNN reports. Somalia’s transitional government supports the move. More than two dozen pirate attacks have been reported in...

Life Imitates Depp: Caribbean Piracy on Rise

Yacht crowd comes under increased attack from armed buccaneers

(Newser) - Pirates of the Caribbean is becoming all too real for yachters, the Los Angeles Times reports, with crime against visiting boats on the rise—and “it's becoming more violent,” one analyst says. The attacks are prompting businesses to advise caution—but they worry that overstating the problem could...

Kickball 'Pirate' Busted With Sword at Macy's

It's just a 'prop,' says not-too-sharp shopper

(Newser) - A knuckle-headed player for a local "Pirates" kickball team was busted at Macy's in Manhattan yesterday for sporting an actual swashbuckler's sword, reports the New York Post. The 29-year-old player told police the sword was a "prop" he was taking to a game—but cops were not amused....

Pirates Hijack Relief Ship Off of Somalia

Attack is third within weeks off the coast long plagued by pirates

(Newser) - Pirates hijacked a Jordanian relief ship off the Somalia coast early yesterday, reports the BBC, and its 12-member international crew are now traveling north with its cargo of 4,000 tons of sugar. Jordan is reportedly working with the Danish embassy in Mogadishu, near where the boat was seized, to...

Spain Speeds to Save Pirate Hostages

Fishing boat is latest target of Somali brigands

(Newser) - A Spanish naval frigate is steaming to the waters off Somalia to rescue crew members of a tuna boat seized by pirates, reports the BBC. The boat was grabbed just days after French commandos freed hostages from a luxury yacht comandeered by Somali pirates. The tuna boat's 26 crew members...

Ignore Pirates or Face Asylum Claims, UK Says

Navy argues blind eye not best policy

(Newser) - In an odd new take on piracy, the British Royal Navy has been told by the Foreign Office not to detain pirates—or they may seek asylum to escape death sentences in their home countries. It's not a strategy roundly hailed. “These people commit horrendous offenses. It’s a...

Somali Pirates Free French Yacht Hostages

No word on whether ransom changed hands

(Newser) - Somali pirates have freed the crew members of the French yacht they commandeered last week, AFP reports. All 30 hostages, including 22 French nationals, were handed over “without incident” in a deal negotiated by the military, Nicolas Sarkozy said.

Pirates Grab French Yacht Off Somalia

France joins regional force to save 30 crew members

(Newser) - Pirates overran a French yacht off the coast of Somalia today and took 30 crew members hostage, AFP reports. Vowing a quick end to the hijacking, France has joined a US-led regional force and may use its own "relatively major military resources within this zone," Prime Minister Francois...

Boat Slayings Suspect Blabs in Prison

Inmate says man confessed to aiding in four murders

(Newser) - A jailhouse confession could doom two suspects in the murder of four people in the Joe Cool fishing boat case, the AP reports. A fellow inmate says suspect Guillermo Zarabozo came clean about the September killings, claiming that accomplice Kirby Archer shot the victims and that Zarabozo dumped the bodies...

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