Pirates have fired on a luxury cruise ship carrying reportedly carrying up to 50 Australians in the Middle East, but their attempted hijack was foiled by an international taskforce.
A helicopter sent by the French warship frightened the pirates off. Denmark, which currently controls NATO forces in the area, alerted the French navy after six to eight armed pirates were seen speeding towards the civilian cruiseliner on two boats.
"The (Danish) navy's tactical command on Sunday led a military operation, dispatching a vessel from the coalition to the aid of a civilian ship threatened by pirates, thereby preventing an act of piracy," Danish navy spokesman Jesper Lynge said.
Tim Rubacky of Oceania Cruises said he could not comment on whether the ship had weapons on board to deal with attempted attacks. The company’s liners pass through the notoriously pirate-infested waters between Yemen and Somalia twice a year, he said.
A Saudi oil tanker carrying 25 crew was successfully nabbed by Somali pirates earlier this month, and has not yet been released.
The 330-metre Sirius Star was carrying two million barrels of crude oil when it was seized on November 15, and its attackers set a November 30 deadline for the owners of the vessel to pay $38.26 million dollars in ransom.
"We are no longer giving any ultimatum, but we will continue to be open for negotiations," Mohamed Said, the leader of the group holding the ship, told AFP.
"The owners of the tanker must engage with the right people,” he added.
"Any kind of negotiations with a third party will be futile and will not end the hostage crisis," the pirate leader said, adding: "Our aim is not to hurt the crew members or damage the ship."
Said told AFP on Monday: "We are being informed that the owners of the tanker were discussing the matter of the release with the powerless Somali government, which does not represent us. Anybody who wants a solution must talk to us."
Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed was quoted in a Saudi newspaper on Monday as saying that the tanker would be freed without a ransom.
"It is not true that the hijackers have demanded a ransom of millions of dollars to release it," he told the Saudi newspaper Okaz.
"We are confident that efforts made by tribal leaders and government officials will result soon in releasing the ship without any ransom."
Yusuf's beleaguered government controls only a few parts of Somalia and has not made any attempt to crack down on piracy, which has thrived in recent months and injected millions of dollars in the coastal economy.
The presence of foreign navies is intended to restore confidence among shipping companies, many of whom are now re-routing to sail around the Cape of Good Hope on the southern tip of Africa.
Increased piracy has caused insurance premiums in the shipping industry to increase, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Russian Navy said on Monday that one of its frigates Neustrashimy (Fearless) had escorted three vessels through the Horn of Africa on Monday.
The announcement came after Somali pirates said that a deal for the release of an arms-laden Ukrainian cargo ship that they seized more than two months ago has been reached and that the release was expected within days.
Meanwhile the Japanese Shipowners' Association said on Monday the country's shipping industry would incur more than 100 million dollars in extra costs if its vessels change their routes to avoid Somalia's pirate-infested waters.
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Pirates have fired on a luxury cruise ship carrying reportedly carrying up to 50 Australians in the Middle East, but their attempted hijack was foiled by an international taskforce.
A helicopter sent by the French warship frightened the pirates off. Denmark, which currently controls NATO forces in the area, alerted the French navy after six to eight armed pirates were seen speeding towards the civilian cruiseliner on two boats.
"The (Danish) navy's tactical command on Sunday led a military operation, dispatching a vessel from the coalition to the aid of a civilian ship threatened by pirates, thereby preventing an act of piracy," Danish navy spokesman Jesper Lynge said.
Tim Rubacky of Oceania Cruises said he could not comment on whether the ship had weapons on board to deal with attempted attacks. The company’s liners pass through the notoriously pirate-infested waters between Yemen and Somalia twice a year, he said.
A Saudi oil tanker carrying 25 crew was successfully nabbed by Somali pirates earlier this month, and has not yet been released.
The 330-metre Sirius Star was carrying two million barrels of crude oil when it was seized on November 15, and its attackers set a November 30 deadline for the owners of the vessel to pay $38.26 million dollars in ransom.
"We are no longer giving any ultimatum, but we will continue to be open for negotiations," Mohamed Said, the leader of the group holding the ship, told AFP.
"The owners of the tanker must engage with the right people,” he added.
"Any kind of negotiations with a third party will be futile and will not end the hostage crisis," the pirate leader said, adding: "Our aim is not to hurt the crew members or damage the ship."
Said told AFP on Monday: "We are being informed that the owners of the tanker were discussing the matter of the release with the powerless Somali government, which does not represent us. Anybody who wants a solution must talk to us."
Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed was quoted in a Saudi newspaper on Monday as saying that the tanker would be freed without a ransom.
"It is not true that the hijackers have demanded a ransom of millions of dollars to release it," he told the Saudi newspaper Okaz.
"We are confident that efforts made by tribal leaders and government officials will result soon in releasing the ship without any ransom."
Yusuf's beleaguered government controls only a few parts of Somalia and has not made any attempt to crack down on piracy, which has thrived in recent months and injected millions of dollars in the coastal economy.
The presence of foreign navies is intended to restore confidence among shipping companies, many of whom are now re-routing to sail around the Cape of Good Hope on the southern tip of Africa.
Increased piracy has caused insurance premiums in the shipping industry to increase, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Russian Navy said on Monday that one of its frigates Neustrashimy (Fearless) had escorted three vessels through the Horn of Africa on Monday.
The announcement came after Somali pirates said that a deal for the release of an arms-laden Ukrainian cargo ship that they seized more than two months ago has been reached and that the release was expected within days.
Meanwhile the Japanese Shipowners' Association said on Monday the country's shipping industry would incur more than 100 million dollars in extra costs if its vessels change their routes to avoid Somalia's pirate-infested waters.
[start_date] => 02 December 2008 | 10:02:47 AM
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