SOMALI PIRACY: Official says sunken 'pirate' ship was Thai boat

By MUNEEZA NAQVI

Associated Press Writer

Indian Navy, HO, File

In this Nov. 11, 2008 file photo made available by Indian Navy, Indian warship INS Tabar, right, escorts the MV Jag Arnav ship to safety after rescuing it from a hijack attempt by Somali pirates. The pirate "mother ship" sunk last week by the Indian navy's INS Tabar was actually a Thai fishing trawler seized hours earlier by pirates, a maritime agency says, but the Indian navy defends its actions, saying it fired in self-defense.

The pirate "mother ship" sunk last week by the Indian navy was actually a Thai fishing trawler seized hours earlier by pirates, a maritime agency said Wednesday. The Indian navy defended its actions, saying it fired in self-defense.

One Thai crew member died when the Indian frigate INS Tabar fired on the boat in the Gulf of Aden last week, according to Noel Choong, who heads the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center in Kuala Lumpur.

One Cambodian crew member was rescued four days later by passing fishermen, but 14 other sailors remain missing, Choong said. The maritime bureau received a report on the apparent mistake late Tuesday from Bangkok-based Sirichai Fisheries, which owned the trawler, the Ekawat Nava5, he said.

"The Indian navy assumed it was a pirate vessel because they may have seen armed pirates on board the boat which had been hijacked earlier," Choong said.

India's navy said last week that the INS Tabar, which began patrolling the gulf on Nov. 2, battled a pirate "mother ship" on Nov. 18, setting the vessel ablaze.

In New Delhi, Indian navy spokesman Commander Nirad Sinha said Wednesday that the INS Tabar was responding to threats to attack from pirates on board the ship.

"Insofar as we are concerned, both its description and its intent were that of a pirate ship," he said. "Only after we were fired upon did we fire. We fired in self-defense. There were gun-toting guys with RPGs on it."

Sirichai Fisheries said its information about the battle came from the Cambodian sailor, who is now recuperating at a hospital in Yemen, said Wicharn Sirichaiekawat, the company's managing director.

"We are saddened with what has happened. It's an unfortunate tragedy. We hope that this incident won't affect the anti-piracy operation by the multi-coalition navies there," Choong added.

Warships from Denmark, India, Malaysia, Russia, the U.S. and NATO patrol the vast international maritime corridor, escorting some merchant ships and responding to distress calls in the area.

The Thai foreign ministry said it was investigating whether the Indian ship correctly followed the rules of engagement and was reviewing reports from the Thai Embassy in New Delhi, the International Maritime Bureau and coalition forces patrolling the waters.

The ministry was also seeking more information on the missing sailors, it said in a statement.

Sirichaiekawat said his company had contacted the International Maritime Bureau after getting messages from other boats in the region that the Ekawat Nava5 had been attacked by pirates.

Sirichai Fisheries asked if any naval ships were close enough to help the stricken boat. The British navy responded, asking for more information, but later said pirates had already boarded the ship and that any sort of naval action would risk harming the crew.

"The British navy instructed us to wait until the pirates contacted us," he said.

Meanwhile, the International Maritime Bureau alerted coalition forces patrolling the region and other military agencies in the area, sending them photos of the vessel, Choong said.

It was unclear if the Indian navy had received the information because it has no direct communication links to the maritime bureau, he said.

"We hope that individual navy warships that are patrolling the gulf would coordinate with the coalition forces or request information from us" to avoid such incidents, Choong added.

It was unclear whether darkness played a role in what happened. The Indian navy said earlier that the final showdown occurred after nightfall.

Somalia, an impoverished nation caught up in an Islamic insurgency, has not had a functioning government since 1991. Somali pirates have become increasingly brazen recently, seizing eight vessels in the past two weeks, including a Saudi supertanker loaded with $100 million worth of crude oil.

There have been 96 pirate attacks this year in Somali waters, with 39 ships hijacked. Fifteen ships with nearly 300 crew are still in the hands of pirates, who have demanded multimillion dollar ransoms.

Shippers worldwide have called for a military blockade of the waters off Somalia's coast to intercept pirate vessels heading out to sea, but NATO officials said there were no such plans.

Associated Press Writers Eileen Ng in Kuala Lumpur and Ambika Ahuja in Bangkok contributed to this report.

SOURCE: Official says sunken 'pirate' ship was Thai boat
Kansas City Star, MO

Indian navy destroys 'pirate ship'

Indian navy destroys 'pirate ship'

The INS Tabar was deployed to the Gulf of Aden to escort Indian ships [File: AFP] An Indian warship in the Gulf of Aden has fought a battle with Somali pirates just hours after three vessels were hijacked off the coast of Somalia. The Indian navy said the pirates' "mother ship" was blown up and the pirates fled in two speedboats in the exchange on Tuesday. The navy said on Wednesday that the INS Tabar approached the pirate ship and asked to search it.

The ship had food, diesel and water on board and had two speedboats in tow.

The navy statement said that they had seen the men on the ship's deck with rocket-propelled grenade launchers and guns. The pirates threatened to blow up the warship, and then opened fire.

The naval statement said: "On repeated calls, the vessel's threatening response was that she would blow up the naval warship. The INS Tabar retaliated in self defence and opened fire on the mother vessel.

"As a result of the firing by INS Tabar, fire broke out on the [Somali] vessel and explosions were heard, possibly due to exploding ammunition that was stored on the vessel."

'Anti-piracy mission'

India deployed the INS Tabar to escort Indian ships after the country's shipping firms said they were losing $450,000 a month on cost overruns and delays in meeting deadlines.

This would be the third attack the INS Tabar has fended off since it began its anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden on Novermber 2.

Naval commandos flying in a helicopter foiled an attempt to hijack an Indian merchant ship on November 11.

The attack took place 285 nautical miles southwest off the Omani city of Salalah.

Somali Pirates board Greek ship in dangerous waters

Somali pirates have seized another ship; a Greek bulk carrier.

The East African Seafarers' Assistance Program says the Greek vessel was taken in the Gulf of Aden, under the guard of a large international naval presence.

It is the second ship seized since the weekend's spectacular capture of a Saudi supertanker that was the largest hijack in history.

The explosion in piracy off Somalia has been fuelled by Islamist rebels who have been able to extract multi-million dollar ransoms from ship-owners.

Pirates board Greek ship in dangerous waters
Cambodia News, Cambodia