Benerson Little
"The trident of Neptune is the scepter of the world."*
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* By Antoine Marin Lemierre, from his poem "Commerce."
“They are always as vagabonds, and in continual exile, without any rest; agitated by the Winds, Rain, Hail, Snow, at the mercy of Pyrats and Rovers, Rocks and Tempests, in continual hazard of being intomb’d in the bellies of fishes...” —Jeremias Heraclitus Christianus, writing of the merchant seaman in The Man of Sorrow, 1677.
“Some the Sea swallowes, but that which most grieves, Some turne Sea-monsters, Pirates, roaving theeves...” —John Taylor, An Apologie for Sea-men, 1615. Archives
(Tags are listed at the foot of the page in this column.)
Boarding party from the USS McFaul aboard pirate mothership Faize Osamani, a captured Indian dhow, on April 5, 2010. (US Department of Defense photograph)
USS Farragut sinking a captured Somali pirate "mother ship" in April, 2010. (US Navy photograph)
Dutch marines from the HNMLSTromp fastrope onto the MV Taipan and capture it from pirates on April 5, 2010. (Dutch Navy photograph)
French pirate hunting frigate Nivose, a "frégate de surveillance." (French navy photograph)
Pirates captured by the French naval vessel Somme in October 2009. (EU NAVFOR Somalia photo)
Boarding team from the frigate HMS Portland captures suspected Somali pirates in June 2009. (Royal Navy photograph)
Dutch commandos capture seven pirates and free twenty fishermen who had been forced to work the mother ship. Unfortunately, the pirates were soon themselves freed due to constraints of Dutch law and of NATO. (Royal Navy photograph)
Small pirate "mother ship" (bateau mère) intercepted by French frigate Nivôse in April 2009. The vessel was loaded with fuel. (French Ministry of Defense photograph)
7.62 mm exit holes in the stern of the Maersk Alabama lifeboat. The holes were plugged with silicone. (Author's photo, taken at the National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum, Ft. Pierce, Florida.)
Captain Richard Phillips (on right) aboard the USS Bainbridge after being rescued from pirates by the US Navy. His captors were shot dead by Navy SEAL snipers. (US Navy photograph)
French commandos aboard the yacht Tanit. (AFP)
Liberation of the yacht Tanit by the French Navy, including members of the Commando Hubert. (French Ministry of Defense photograph)
Captured Somali pirates. (US Navy photograph)
MV Sirius Star ransomed by air drop. (US Navy photograph)
A few of the pirates who captured the arms ship MV Faina. (US Navy photograph)
Thai fishing trawler destroyed by Indian frigate INS Tabar. The trawler was under attack by pirates. The frigate, which came under fire from pirates aboard the trawler, believed the vessel was a pirate "mother ship." (India Defense Ministry photograph)
French commandos capture several of the pirates who held the luxury yacht Le Ponant for ransom. (French Ministry of Defense photograph)
Pirate skiff destroyed by the USS Porter in 2007. (US Navy photograph)
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Piracy News & CommentaryPiracy Charges DroppedAugust 20, 2010
Piracy charges have been dropped against six Somalis who attacked the USS Ashland in April 2010. Under US law, a pirate is a sea thief. If he "merely" attempts piracy, he is not a pirate. However, in the popular mind and historical tradition, not to mention to my own mind, a pirate is (more…)
No KiddingAugust 15, 2010
Several recent articles in various newspapers and industry journals have pointed out that Somali pirates are adapting their tactics. No kidding. Tactics invariably evolve, and both shipowners and navies need to be prepared for this.
The Definition of PiracyAugust 15, 2010
Good Wall Street Journal article on the problems arising from the definitions of piracy. (Article forwarded by Shaun Chittick.)
Unions Support Arming Ships Against PiratesMarch 18, 2010
According to Lloyd's List, seafarer unions now support the arming of merchant vessels with armed military personnel when transiting piracy-prone areas. The unions still oppose arming seafarers themselves.
Pirates SentencedMarch 14, 2010
Lloyd's List has reported that twenty pirates were recently tried in Kenya and sentenced to twenty years apiece. An estimated four hundred suspected pirates are being held worldwide for trial.
Bravo ZuluMarch 8, 2010
A BZ to European Union navies, in particular to the French frigate Nivose and her crew, who, along with the Italian support ship Etna, two naval helicopters, and Spanish maritime patrol aircraft, captured thirty-five suspected Somali pirates, four mother ships, and six skiffs in two days this weekend. Warning (more…)
Piracy UpdateMarch 4, 2010
Briefly updating, Lloyd's List reports intelligence sources indicating a likely upsurge in pirate attacks over the next three weeks during the inter-monsoon season. Pirates at the four major pirate ports--Hardare, Eyl, Garacad, and Hobyo--are preparing for sea.
The journal also reports that many shipping companies are threatening to avoid the Gulf of (more…) Banditry, Not PiracyMarch 2, 2010
A few observers are already comparing news that Somali pirates in Eyl have captured and are holding for ransom three UN food aid trucks and their drivers to attacks on shore targets by pirates of the past. However, unless the Somali pirates are attacking from the sea, their theft and hostage taking ashore is (more…)
Nemesis 5000March 2, 2010
The Nemesis 5000 is another anti-piracy technology intended as a non-lethal means of preventing pirates from boarding. It may be used in conjunction with other non-lethal means, or in conjunction with armed force (although the manufacturer does not advertise it this way). The system, intended as a cost effective alternative to expensive security teams, works (more…)
Piracy NewsJanuary 19, 2010
Somali pirates who captured the Maran Centaurus actually asked for EU Navfor assistance to protect them against a rival pirate gang, just prior to the release of the vessel. The request was denied. The vessel was ransomed for a record $6 million. (Source: Lloyd's List)
The Yemen Navy is offering anti-piracy (more…) One Benefit to Somali PiracyJanuary 12, 2010
An AP article forwarded to me by Elana Langer, "Kenya Fishermen See Upside to Pirates: More Fish," points out that the threat of pirate attack has forced many foreign illegal fishing trawlers to seek other waters out (more…)
More Piracy News TidbitsJanuary 7, 2010
The Turkish ambassador to the UN has sent a letter suggesting that the UN oversee trials of accused Somali pirates. To date, the issue of arguments and questions over venue has been the most significant factor in preventing the trial of many accused Somali pirates. In many cases, some naval authorities have simply released captured Somali pirates. ( (more…)
Recent Piracy NewsJanuary 4, 2010
Rear Adm. Terence "Terry" McKnight (USN, Ret.), past commander of Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) and Combined Task Force 151 (CTF-151) and veteran of joint anti-piracy operations, has criticized the media for dramatizing piracy at the expense of other world-wide naval operations, including those associated with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He further suggests, correctly, (more…)
Somali Pirate Stock ExchangeJanuary 2, 2010
Recommended reading: Reuters article on a pirate cooperative in Haradheere, which functions as a sort of stock exchange for funding acts of piracy. As many as seventy-two “maritime companies” now exist in the city; ten have so far had successful returns. My thanks (more…)
Bravo Zulu to the Maersk Alabama's CrewNovember 20, 2009
A well-deserved BZ to the crew of the Maersk Alabama, and in particular to the defense force that repelled the pirate attack on the ship this past week. To date, no ship with armed defenders has been captured by pirates, yet many shipping companies, insurance companies, maritime organizations, and governments remain opposed (more…)
"Panic Rooms"October 21, 2009
Regarding the recently noted potential dangers associated with the use of "panic rooms" aboard ships under pirate attack (a mariner was recently murdered by pirates when he refused to open the "panic room" hatch or door), all defensive measures, lethal and non-lethal, carry a measure of risk. "Panic rooms" are no exception, and indeed, (more…)
Pirates Threaten to Murder HostagesOctober 21, 2009
According to Lloyd's List and other news feeds, including that of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, pirates holding the Panamax* bulk carrier De Xin Hai have threatened to kill the hostages if any attempt is made to rescue them. The Chinese foreign minister has stated that a rescue attempt (more…)
Pirates Repulsed by Armed GuardsOctober 15, 2009
A few days ago, French soldiers stationed aboard two French tuna trawlers near the Seychelles fended off a pirate attack. Neither soldiers nor trawler crew were injured in the brief firefight. Other forces pursued the pirates and captured eleven of them. If your French is good, read the Le Figaro article (more…)
More Hungry Young Fools With GunsOctober 8, 2009
After the release of the Turkish bulk carrier Horizon I and her crew of twenty-three, owing to the payment of a $1.7 ransom ($1.5 million in some reports), a separate gang of pirates attempted to rob those who had captured and ransomed the ship. According to Garowe Online, a Somali news agency, fighting broke (more…)
Hungry Young Fools With GunsOctober 7, 2009
Five Somali pirates were captured after mistakenly attacking a French warship, the Somme, with small arms at night, roughly 270 nautical miles offshore. Pirates have been ranging farther and farther to sea in the search for prey, and an increase in night attacks has been predicted. Even so, it takes more than daring (more…)
US Counter-Piracy InitiativesApril 16, 2009
Secretary of State Clinton has announced a four part plan to combat Somali piracy. First, the US will “help the Somalis assist us in cracking down on pirate bases and in decreasing incentives for young Somali men to engage in piracy.” Second, via the International Contact Group on Piracy, the US will press for (more…)
Notes and Observations on Recent Somali PiracyApril 15, 2009
Predictions and Outcomes. Many analysts had predicted that the US would not use force to resolve the Maersk Alabama hostage situation, arguing that hostage rescues are risky, both for hostages and for rescuers. And they are. However, many analysts forget about two critical elements of tactics: the seizing of opportunity, (more…)
Somali Piracy Finally a US IssueApril 14, 2009
The recent pirate attack on the US-flagged Maersk Alabama--whose captain and crew courageously resisted the pirates--has finally brought the issue of Somali piracy to the forefront in the US. The attention is well-deserved, for Somali piracy has become a significant threat to the shipping along one of the great world (more…)
Private Security for Commercial ShippingFebruary 12, 2009
The issue of responsibility for the protection of commercial shipping in pirate waters has been much debated recently, particularly with the rise of Somali piracy. Until the mid-nineteenth century, responsibility was divided between navies and merchant vessels. Navies did what they could, patrolling pirate waters and occasionally raiding pirate strongholds, but the sea is (more…)
Fear of ConsequencesFebruary 6, 2009
Although the US Navy inspected the boats of departing pirates after a ransom was recently paid to free the arms vessel MV Faina, it took no action against the pirates. (The boats were inspected in order to ensure that no arms from the vessel's cargo were being transported ashore.) The Associated Press quotes a spokesperson for the (more…)
Tactical AdaptationFebruary 5, 2009
It is a fact of war--and of life in general--that tactics inspire countermeasures, which in turn inspire the improvement of tactics, and even new tactics. The principal military response to the Somali pirates has been an increase in naval patrols, and which has initially been successful in reducing the number (more…)
Piracy versus Terrorism Part 2February 4, 2009
On January 28, the New York Times published "Backgrounder: Combating Maritime Piracy" by Stephanie Hanson. The following is an expanded version of a letter to the editor I wrote in response, but which was not published.
The article points out correctly that experts (a word much (more…) Anti-Pirate Sonic LasersJanuary 26, 2009
Lloyd's List, a publication of the venerable insurance firm Lloyd's of London, not to mention the world's leading maritime newspaper, reported today that Somali pirates have released the US-owned chemical tanker Biscaglia and its crew of twenty-eight, almost certainly after payment of an undisclosed ransom. The capture of the tanker last (more…)
Islamists and Piracy in SomaliaJanuary 16, 2009
The BBC has reported that Somali Islamists have executed a Somali politician for the crime of apostacy, in that he had worked with the non-Moslem Ethiopian occupying forces. In the Sharia court's view, this was sufficient evidence that the official had abandoned his Moslem faith. (Ethiopian forces recently withdrew from Somalia, having failed to oust (more…)
Brief Update on Somali PiracyJanuary 14, 2009
Briefly updating yesterday's post on the perils of piracy, the Russian frigate Admiral Vinogradov foiled an attack today on the containership Nedlloyd Barentsz, wounding and capturing three pirates in the process. The captured pirates were turned over to Yemeni authorities. In spite of recent releases, Somali pirates are still holding eleven merchant vessels and two hundred (more…)
The Perils of PiracyJanuary 13, 2009
In the late 17th century, buccaneer surgeon and author Alexander Esquemelin noted that pieces-of-eight were not “gathered as easily as pears from a tree,” contrary to the expectations of those new to piracy. The Somali pirates are quickly discovering just how right he was. After a year noted for attacks on more than one (more…)
Secretary of State Nominee Clinton Appears to Equate Piracy With TerrorismJanuary 13, 2009
In her opening statement today during the Senate confirmation hearing on her nomination as Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton stated that “even an ancient form of terror--piracy--[is] asserting itself in modern form off the Horn of Africa.” (I assume that by using the term "terror" she meant "terrorism," given that its use in the context of international relations is almost invariably taken to indicate terrorism.) Although the argument that piracy is terrorism is a popular one, even an enticing one, (more…)
Where Some Reporters and Commentators on Somali Piracy Have Got It Wrong...January 12, 2009
It is not uncommon lately to find reporters and other commentators, in print and on television, proclaiming with obvious admiration about how “heavily armed” and “bold” are the Somali pirates. Often these well-intentioned media members refer to Somali pirates in very romantic terms, “modern buccaneers” for example, even claiming occasionally that they have taken (more…)
Countering the Gulf PiratesOctober 19, 2008
A Bravo Zulu* to the French, in particular to the French Navy and its special operations force for the rescue of two French citizens held by Somali pirates, and to President Sarkozy for authorizing the raid. On the night of September 15, a force of French naval commandos composed of the commando Hubert--a French (more…)
Somali PiracyOctober 7, 2008
This year alone, Somali pirates have attacked more than fifty vessels, captured more than thirty, and have been paid more than $30 million in ransoms. Somali pirates are currently holding ten or more vessels and nearly two hundred sixty hostages. Six separate gangs are involved in the trade, and some estimates place annual income from (more…)
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