As a deterrance to other 'pirate negotiators', in early August Mohammad Saaili Shibin was sentenced in a US court to multiple sentences of life imprisonment. He was sentenced to "10 concurrent life sentences...two consecutive life sentences...10 years consecutive...and two 20-year sentences... and is also required to pay restitution in the amount of approximately $5,408,000US."
Mohammad Saaili Shibin was one of the first 'pirates' renditioned from Somalia to the USA, and was convicted in April this year for supposedly acting as a negotiator for both the hijacking of an American yacht in February 2011 and a German merchant ship in 2010. He allegedly admitted to some of the charges after being captured in Somalia and whilst being taken to the US on a flight that took three days. The US thanked Germany for its help in the prosecution.
In contrast, in April 2011 Ali Mohamed Ali, another alleged 'pirate negptiator', was arrested whilst travelling in the USA and was charged with piracy. His trial is still on-going, but already the judge has found that universal jurisdiction does not apply as Ali was arrested on land. He was not arrested at high sea.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Current Military Forces Present
| Military forces present in the Horn of Africa on 14 July 2012: |
| Australia, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, Portugal, Russia, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, and the USA. |
These are ships from Operation Atalanta, Operation Ocean Shield, CTF 151 and the independent navies. Note: Greece and the UK no longer participate due to austerity measures.)
Read more about the campaigns.
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Dubai Conference June 2012
In the last week of June, the second international counter-piracy conference to be held in the UAE (United Arab Emirates) occurred.
The conference was attended by more than 400 people representing 41 countries, executives from 73 maritime companies and organisations, and various UN and IMO (International Maritime Organisation) personnel. Present at the conference were both President Shaikh Sharif Shaikh Ahmad of the TFG and President Ahmad Mohammad Silyano of Somaliland.
The Conference's aim was to further advance public-private coordination in the fight against piracy. During the conference, the UAE pledged 1 million U.S. dollars to the Somali maritime security and coastguard. Earlier in the month the UAE had withdrawn their funding of the Puntland Maritime Police Force. (This funding had only been announced in February this year. Read the story here)
The UAE and France also announced that with the help of France, the UAE will host training of Somali judges to support and enable local, Somalia-based prosecutions of people charged with piracy. The first group of 31 Somali judges will travel to the UAE in October for training in holding piracy trials.
The UAE are the current chair of the Contact Group on Piracy.
The conference was attended by more than 400 people representing 41 countries, executives from 73 maritime companies and organisations, and various UN and IMO (International Maritime Organisation) personnel. Present at the conference were both President Shaikh Sharif Shaikh Ahmad of the TFG and President Ahmad Mohammad Silyano of Somaliland.
The Conference's aim was to further advance public-private coordination in the fight against piracy. During the conference, the UAE pledged 1 million U.S. dollars to the Somali maritime security and coastguard. Earlier in the month the UAE had withdrawn their funding of the Puntland Maritime Police Force. (This funding had only been announced in February this year. Read the story here)
The UAE and France also announced that with the help of France, the UAE will host training of Somali judges to support and enable local, Somalia-based prosecutions of people charged with piracy. The first group of 31 Somali judges will travel to the UAE in October for training in holding piracy trials.
The UAE are the current chair of the Contact Group on Piracy.
Monday, July 2, 2012
Netherlands Increases Role in OceanShield
On 2nd July, just weeks after the Netherlands increased its contribution to the NATO anti-piracy fleet, Operation Oceanshield, it has arrested more alleged pirates - and this time handed them over to Oman for prosecution. The seven people were arrested on 29th June when the Dutch navy freed a hi-jacked Omani-flagged dhow.
After the incident, the Dutch commander of Oceanshield, Commodore Ben Bekkering, is reported as saying, "...the joy on the faces of the freed crew in an equally beautiful picture as container ships arriving in Rotterdam." (Bekkering has a Facebook and Twitter account he updates regularly.)
In 2010, Bekkering was captain of one of the first reported incidents of overt patrolling of coastal villages in Somalia. It is alleged that using both landing craft and the warship, Bekkering patrolled close enough into the shore to be able to observe the coast and villages, and to stop boats and ships leaving the habours.
Netherlands has only within the last two weeks increased significantly its involvement in Operation Oceanshield. In early June, the Dutch parliament voted to spend US$16.5 million, this money is to provide: extra personnel, two Cougar helicopters, a drone and an additional submarine. In the same week, the parliament turned down a request from merchant ship owners to use private security for protection.
As to Atalanta, the Dutch parliament declared it 'controversial' due to the mandate that allows Atalanta forces to attack coastal 'pirate' camps from the sea or land. Operation Oceanshield still does not have this mandate.
After the incident, the Dutch commander of Oceanshield, Commodore Ben Bekkering, is reported as saying, "...the joy on the faces of the freed crew in an equally beautiful picture as container ships arriving in Rotterdam." (Bekkering has a Facebook and Twitter account he updates regularly.)
In 2010, Bekkering was captain of one of the first reported incidents of overt patrolling of coastal villages in Somalia. It is alleged that using both landing craft and the warship, Bekkering patrolled close enough into the shore to be able to observe the coast and villages, and to stop boats and ships leaving the habours.
Netherlands has only within the last two weeks increased significantly its involvement in Operation Oceanshield. In early June, the Dutch parliament voted to spend US$16.5 million, this money is to provide: extra personnel, two Cougar helicopters, a drone and an additional submarine. In the same week, the parliament turned down a request from merchant ship owners to use private security for protection.
As to Atalanta, the Dutch parliament declared it 'controversial' due to the mandate that allows Atalanta forces to attack coastal 'pirate' camps from the sea or land. Operation Oceanshield still does not have this mandate.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Book Highlights Toxic-Waste Dumping
A recently published book about organised crime once more highlights the dumping of toxic waste off the coast of Somalia.
'Crime, Trafficking and Networks', published in May this year, reports on the links between several organised crime groups in southern Italy and some Somali warlords. Interestingly, the attention-grabbing title and opening sentence of the article about the book, focus on possible links between the Mafia and Somali pirates. But what follows are claims by the Paris-based criminologist, Michel Koutouzis, that it is some Somali warlords who the Mafia supply "... with black market small arms from the Western Balkans in return for permission to dump waste."
Koutouzis then goes onto point out that, "Tonnes of waste are discharged every year off the coasts of Somalia, Sudan and Eritrea under the noses of countless warships which control sea freight in the Read Sea and the Gulf of Aden."
He says that the practise has been going on for years, and refers to 'After the Tsunami', the UN Environment Taskforce report of 2005 that spoke of the toxic waste washed ashore with the 2004 tsunami.
According to the article, both the EU's special envoy for the Horn of Africa, a former Greek diplomat, and the commander of Atalanta, a British rear-Admiral, were interviewed about the information in the book. The special envoy said that the matter was being 'checked'. However, the rear-admiral said there was "...no hard evidence of the Italian link,.."
Koutouzis' response was that, "Of course they know about it. But they don't want to do anything."
Sunday, June 17, 2012
In France: Four Guilty, Two Acquitted
The trial of the six Somali men arrested on land in 2008 by French paratroopers has ended with four found guilty and two acquitted. The men found guilty have been sentenced to between four and ten years. The person who received ten years had admitted during interrogation to being a pirate.
The group were arrested after paratroopers used a helicopter to stop a taxi they were travelling in, and had been held in custody since then. The two youngest were acquitted.
French prosecution are appealing the sentences, they say that they are too lenient.
The group were arrested after paratroopers used a helicopter to stop a taxi they were travelling in, and had been held in custody since then. The two youngest were acquitted.
French prosecution are appealing the sentences, they say that they are too lenient.
Saturday, June 9, 2012
USA Re-defines Piracy
The US Court of Appeal has held that unsuccessful attacks on boats is piracy.
On May 23rd the US Court of Appeal upheld sentences of life + 80 years imprisonment for five Somali men convicted in November 2010 of piracy against a US navy frigate; the court also sent another case back to a lower court to be retried.
It is alleged that the five men sentenced to life plus 80 years had, in April 2010, fired at the USS Nicholas, a warship that had been disguised as a merchant ship. The Somali men had been captured and transported to the US where they had been tried for piracy, found guilty and sentenced. At the same time, there had been another court case with very similar circumstances and even in the same month: in April 2010 a group of Somali men had approached but not boarded the USS Ashland. The men were captured and taken to the US for trial. One man plead guilty and was sentenced to 30 years imprisonment, the others had piracy charges against them dismissed as the men had not taken control of or robbed the ship. The US Court of Appeal sent that case back to the lower court for further proceedings.
Thus it is now clear in US law that piracy does not have to actually involve boarding or robbing a vessel, piracy can be a threat of an attack.
In the meantime, prosecution continue to say that they want the death penalty for the remaining three Somali men still awaiting trial for the hi-jacking of the US yacht Quest in February 2011. During that incidence, the four Americans on board the boat were killed.
On May 23rd the US Court of Appeal upheld sentences of life + 80 years imprisonment for five Somali men convicted in November 2010 of piracy against a US navy frigate; the court also sent another case back to a lower court to be retried.
It is alleged that the five men sentenced to life plus 80 years had, in April 2010, fired at the USS Nicholas, a warship that had been disguised as a merchant ship. The Somali men had been captured and transported to the US where they had been tried for piracy, found guilty and sentenced. At the same time, there had been another court case with very similar circumstances and even in the same month: in April 2010 a group of Somali men had approached but not boarded the USS Ashland. The men were captured and taken to the US for trial. One man plead guilty and was sentenced to 30 years imprisonment, the others had piracy charges against them dismissed as the men had not taken control of or robbed the ship. The US Court of Appeal sent that case back to the lower court for further proceedings.
Thus it is now clear in US law that piracy does not have to actually involve boarding or robbing a vessel, piracy can be a threat of an attack.
In the meantime, prosecution continue to say that they want the death penalty for the remaining three Somali men still awaiting trial for the hi-jacking of the US yacht Quest in February 2011. During that incidence, the four Americans on board the boat were killed.
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