The word pirate is primarily associated with 17th century imagery, adventure and treasure. But sea piracy still exists today. Modern sea bandits are most often operating in the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea, off the coast of Somalia and in the Strait of Malacca. They are often armed with AK-47 rifles and grenade launchers.
Now pirates go to sea not on old sailing ships, but on high-speed boats and seize merchant ships, yachts and other ships, often taking hostages and demanding ransom for them. Theft of millions of dollars worth of goods, bloody murders and treacherous abductions take place every year. Here are some of the most shocking cases.
Yacht "Quest"
In 2011, 4 Americans went on a trip around the world on a yacht called "Quest". Unfortunately, the voyage soon turned into a real nightmare when they were attacked by Somali pirates 305 kilometers off the coast of Oman. In response, the US Navy sent its aircraft carrier USS Enterprise and three other warships to the area to free the hostages.
Within a few days, the military reached the location of the yacht, which the pirates were trying to drive off to the coast of Somalia. In the process of negotiations on the release of American citizens on board the American destroyer with guided missiles "Sterett" (USS Sterett), 2 envoys from the pirates went up. Representatives of the Navy offered the pirates an exchange of hostages for a yacht, but the bandits refused such a deal, believing that the prisoners could be obtained as a much more significant ransom.
While the pirate negotiators were sailing back, one of the Somali bandits fired a rocket-propelled grenade from the Quest at the American destroyer. Fortunately, they missed. Following the grenade from the deck of the yacht, shooting followed, and the Americans had to react - the US Navy SEAL team was ordered to recapture the yacht and save the hostages from the aggressors. There was a short battle, during which 2 pirates were killed (one was shot, the other was stabbed to death), the rest of the bandits surrendered. To the greatest regret, all 4 hostages were killed by pirates - they died from the received gunshot wounds.
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The US military also found the bodies of 2 more pirates, who had been killed earlier under unknown circumstances. It is possible that during the seizure of the Quest yacht, American tourists gave a fitting rebuff to the bandits. It is still not clear what exactly caused the pirates to shoot their prisoners.
Tanker "Chaumont"
According to experts, one of the most serious dangers associated with modern piracy is the risk of environmental disaster. When pirates hijack merchant ships, they often tie up the crew and leave the ships uncontrolled. Sometimes such vessels continue their movement at full speed along an uncontrolled trajectory.
The most terrible situation is when a captured ship with industrial cargo is deprived of control in a narrow strait. This threatens with an almost 100% chance that the ship will crash, and all of its contents (often oil and tanks with chemical liquids) will splash into the ocean. This is exactly what almost happened in 1999 in the Strait of Malacca between Malaysia and Indonesia when the French tanker Chaumont was hijacked.
The pirates were armed with machetes and attacked the tanker early in the morning, quickly gaining full control of the vessel. After immobilizing all crew members, the bandits emptied the safe and left the side. The tied sailors could not free themselves for another 35 minutes, during which the tanker went at full speed along the narrow channel. Many still believe that it is a real miracle that the Chaumont did not collide with another ship or with underwater rocks. He did not even sit on the reefs that line the entire coast of the region.
Sir Peter Blake
In 2001, the world community was shocked by the assassination of Sir Peter Blake, a famous seafarer from New Zealand. He was considered one of the most prominent sailors of all time. Blake has twice won the America's Cup, the most prestigious trophy in yachting, and has set a number of world records on his boat. In 2001, he began his journey along the Amazon River as part of a research expedition to check the ecological state of the river.
On the night of 5 December, Blake and 14 other crew members aboard the yacht Seamaster anchored in the Macapa suburb when 8 pirates armed with firearms and knives boarded the ship. While the bandits shouted their demands, Peter grabbed a rifle and shot one of the intruders. A firefight began, in which the legendary navigator was killed. The bandits enriched themselves with a small engine and a few hours. This was the cost of Blake's life.
Piracy in the waters of the Amazon is very common. Many believe that the problem has worsened especially in recent years, as local authorities have no influence in the area. The tragic assassination of Sir Peter Blake clearly demonstrates the ugliness of modern piracy.
Abduction of Tebbutt
In September 2011, British loyalists Judith Tebbutt and her husband David (Judith Tebbutt, David) were vacationing in an elite resort on the Kenyan coast. They were the only guests in the secluded resort, and Judith didn't like that immediately. On the second night of their stay at the hotel, the couple were awakened by armed pirates. The wife was forcibly put on board a boat and taken to Somalia, where she was held hostage in a cramped refuge.
Judith and David Tebbutt
During the capture, the woman learned that her husband had been killed on the night of the attack when David tried to resist one of the robbers. Presumably, these pirates were associated with the Islamist military group Al-Shabaab. In March 2012, the pirates released Judith after 6 months in prison. Apparently, this only happened because Tebbutt's relatives paid a large ransom.
Ship "Maersk Alabama" (Maersk Alabama)
This is the merchant ship Maersk Alabama, best known for the movie Captain Philips, based on the incident. In 2009, this American ship attracted the attention of the entire world community due to the attack on it by pirates. The vessel was crossing the Indian Ocean on its way to the Kenyan port of Mombasa when it was attacked by Somali bandits in a small motorboat. Despite the resistance of the crew, the pirates managed to board the merchant ship.
Within minutes, the bandits captured the ship's captain, Richard Phillips, but failed to capture all 21 crew members. Many of the sailors were able to lock themselves in a fortified cabin. The crew managed to turn off the ship's engines, preventing the pirates from taking full control of the ship. Moreover, the sailors actively resisted, they even set up an ambush and captured one of the pirates.
The robbers quickly realized that they were out of control and left the ship. The three pirates decided to try to escape in the lifeboat of the Maersk Alabama, taking Captain Phillips with them to cover their rear as they sailed back to Somalia.
The boat was pursued by several US warships at once, negotiating with the pirates for the release of the captain. After days of fruitless negotiations, and after one failed escape attempt by Captain Phillips, SEAL snipers shot all three pirates. The captain was rescued, and he and his crew were recognized as heroes for their bravery and resourcefulness.
Hijacking of the Achille Lauro liner
The incident happened in 1985. "Achille Lauro" - an Italian liner cruised the Mediterranean with 700 passengers on board. On October 7, the ship landed in Alexandria. Here, many of the ship's guests went ashore to visit the famous pyramids. At the same time, 4 Palestinian militants associated with the Palestinian Liberation Front got on the ship. Waving their rifles, they hijacked the liner, giving the order to leave the port along with 400 people on board, including vacationers and crew.
Armed militants demanded the release of 50 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons. The Israeli authorities refused to respond to these demands. The pirates sent Achille Lauro to the Syrian port of Tartus, but the Syrian government banned them from entering their territory. Angry about the refusal, pirates responded by shooting a 69-year-old American Jew in a wheelchair and throwing his body overboard. Presumably, the choice fell on him for religious reasons.
Then the liner went to Egypt, where the hijackers appealed to the local authorities, released the hostages in exchange for unhindered access to the airport and received a plane on which they were going to escape in an unknown direction. However, after the aircraft took off, US fighters intercepted it on the orders of US President Ronald Reagan. The plane was forced to land at a NATO base in Italy, where local authorities arrested the hijackers.
The ship "Naham 3" (The Naham 3)
In 2012, the fishing vessel Naham 3 was fishing in the Indian Ocean when it was attacked by Somali pirates. The crew consisted of 29 people hailing from various Asian countries, including China, Vietnam and the Philippines. The sailors were taken to Somalia, where they were held in the desert. The invaders demanded huge sums of money for the return of the captives safe and sound.
According to the fishermen, during captivity they were often beaten, they had to eat rats and beetles in order to survive. Two crew members died of illness, another was shot. Four and a half years later, the pirates received a much lower amount for the captives, but nevertheless they released the 26 remaining hostages home. In total, they remained in captivity for 1,672 days.
Attack on the liner "Siburn Spirit" (Seabourn Spirit)
In 2005, the Siburn Spirit cruise ship was 160 km offshore Somalia when it was attacked by pirates. Two boats with heavily armed bandits circled the ship with 300 passengers on board, and then the bandits opened fire. The vessel was fired upon from machine guns and grenade launchers several times. Two of the liner security personnel Michael Grove and Som Bahadur Gurung (Michael Groves, Som Bahadur Gurung) attempted to repel the attack by the robbers using a high-pressure hose and a high-tech LRAD sonic cannon.
During the fight, Gurund was wounded by a shrapnel in the explosion of a shell fired from a grenade launcher, but Grove managed to drag him to safety, after which he continued to fight the sea bandits under heavy fire. After half an hour, the pirates finally surrendered and retreated, and the Siburn Spirit liner was able to retreat to sea at a safe distance. For their courage, Grove and Gurund were awarded medals of honor and received them from the hands of the Queen of England.
Cargo ship "Erria Inge"
The Australian freighter Erria Inge was leased by a Chinese company in 1990. After a few months, both the owner of the ship and the tenant company lost contact with the ship. It was believed that the Erria Inge was attacked by pirates. Then, based on a number of circumstantial evidence, it became clear that the ship was given a new name, and according to forged documents, the stolen ship was used to deliver illegal cargo. Pirates do this quite often, knowing that none of the ordinary shipping companies will rush to risk their lives and return their ships.
The mysterious story of Erriya Inge was continued in 1992, when employees of the new owner of the ship, who bought it for scrap metal, made an unusual discovery. In a long-unused freezer, they found the remains of 10 burnt bodies. It was completely unclear who these victims were and what happened to them, but there was little doubt about the pirates' involvement. The shocking discovery made aboard the hijacked ship Erria Inge is an eerie reminder of the dangers still present in today's seas and oceans.
Used materials from the site bugaga.ru