See: Drowning For Dollars
Think it's related to their stand on the "War on Terror?" If someone is getting skittish about supporting a mission.... CUI BONO?
Also see: Cause and Effect in Somalia
"Pirates hijack German gas tanker
What, the Germans want out of the patrols or out of Afghanistan?
NAIROBI - Pirates off Somalia hijacked a German tanker loaded with liquefied petroleum gas yesterday off the Horn of Africa. The ship's 13-man crew was reported safe, even though gunshots were heard over the ship's radio. The MV Longchamp is the third ship captured by pirates this month in the Gulf of Aden, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.
Piracy has taken an increasing toll on international shipping in the key water link between the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean. Pirates made an estimated $30 million hijacking ships for ransom last year, seizing more than 40 vessels off Somalia's coastline.
More than a dozen warships from countries including Britain, France, Germany, Iran, China, and the United States now patrol Somali waters to protect vessels. But the warships were not near the Longchamp when it was taken, said Lieutenant Nathan Christensen, a Bahrain-based spokesman for the US 5th Fleet.
By DESIGN? And if the WEST'S FLEET of battleships can't stop some skiff-boating pirates, WTF are we PAYING FOR anyway?
Seven pirates boarded the Bahamas-registered Longchamp early yesterday, said the tanker's manager, Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement. Spokesman Andre Delau said the ship's master had been briefly allowed to communicate with the firm and had said the crew was safe.
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