Pirates choose the wrong boat to pick on

As if yesterday’s insight into capturing pirates were an eerie premonition, the U.S. Navy today did exactly that: scooped up five pirates in a firefight.  The pirates fired on the U.S. Ship, the USS Nicholas, and imagine the pirates’ surprise when that vessel not only fired back, but pursued the rogue skiff. They sunk the ...

By , International Crisis Group’s senior analyst for Colombia.

As if yesterday's insight into capturing pirates were an eerie premonition, the U.S. Navy today did exactly that: scooped up five pirates in a firefight.  The pirates fired on the U.S. Ship, the USS Nicholas, and imagine the pirates' surprise when that vessel not only fired back, but pursued the rogue skiff. They sunk the pirates' boat, and then went on to pursue a "mother ship." Five pirates were captured in all. All this happened between about midnight and 3 in the morning, local time.

As if yesterday’s insight into capturing pirates were an eerie premonition, the U.S. Navy today did exactly that: scooped up five pirates in a firefight.  The pirates fired on the U.S. Ship, the USS Nicholas, and imagine the pirates’ surprise when that vessel not only fired back, but pursued the rogue skiff. They sunk the pirates’ boat, and then went on to pursue a "mother ship." Five pirates were captured in all. All this happened between about midnight and 3 in the morning, local time.

Despite all this, and the recent U.S. efforts, piracy is — if anything — picking up in the Gulf of Aden. Reuters estimates that this comes to the tune of "tens of millions of dollars" in ransom. Perhaps even more alarming, they’re getting further and further out to sea, recently hijacking a ship closer to India than their mother Somali shores. 

Elizabeth Dickinson is International Crisis Group’s senior analyst for Colombia.

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