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US Navy watches as Somali pirates nab $3.2 million

(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-02-06 09:12

NAIROBI, Kenya -- As US Navy ships looked on, Somali pirates sped away Thursday with $3.2 million in ransom after releasing an arms-laden Ukrainian freighter - ending a four-month standoff that focused world attention on piracy off Somalia's lawless coast.

In this Sept. 29, 2008, file photograph originally provided by the US Navy, the pirated merchant ship MV Faina is seen from a US Navy guided-missile cruiser in the Indian Ocean. [Agencies]

The Navy said it couldn't seize the bandits for fear of endangering 147 other seamen still held hostage on other hijacked ships.

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So, within sight of two nearby US warships, the pirates counted the cash - air-dropped by parachute - then took off in motorboats, pirate Aden Abdi Omar said, speaking to The Associated Press by satellite phone after arriving in the central Somali town of Harardhere.

"We are not holding it (the ship) anymore," said Omar, adding that more than two dozen pirates made their escape aboard motorized skiffs, navigating the choppy waters in small groups.

The $3.2 million booty - among the largest-ever reported ransoms - would be divvied up among the pirates, he said.

The seizure of the MV Faina, loaded with Soviet-era tanks and other heavy weapons, was one of the most brazen in a surge of pirate attacks on shipping off the Somali coast. Vessels from the US Navy's 5th Fleet quickly surrounded the cargo ship after it was seized Sept. 25, to make sure the arms on board did not get into the hands of Somali insurgents believed to have links to al-Qaida.

The hijacking brought an unprecedented naval response. Warships from countries including the US, India, Britain, France, Germany, China, Saudi Arabia and South Korea have joined the anti-piracy campaign, though attacks continue. Turkey's government announced plans Thursday to send naval ships for the campaign.

On Thursday, US seamen inspected the pirates' boats to ensure they weren't carrying any of the freighter's weapons cargo.

But the Navy did not take action against the pirates because they still hold many hostages from other ships, said Cmdr. Jane Campbell, a spokeswoman for the US Navy's Bahrain-based 5th Fleet.

"Even when you release Faina, there are still 147 mariners held hostage," Campbell told the AP. "We're concerned for their well-being."

Ships from the US Navy's 5th Fleet closely monitored the Faina and its 20 surviving crew throughout the standoff after the captain died of a heart attack, and the US sent medical workers to the ship Thursday once the pirates left.

"We are extremely pleased" at the release, said Vice Adm. Bill Gortney of US Naval Forces Central Command. "The United States Navy and our coalition partners will continue to fight piracy, and work with the international community to find a long-term, shore-based solution to this maritime crime."

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