Saudi-owned crude oil supertanker Sirius
Star is seen during its naming ceremony in South Korea in this undated
handout picture released on June 18, 2008 and obtained by Reuters on Nov.
18, 2008. . (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo
Gallery>>>
WASHINGTON,
Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- The United States imposed on Thursday financial sanctions
against three alleged leaders of an extremist Islamic militia in Somalia.
The three targeted by the U.S. Treasury Department
are Mukhtar Robow, spokesman for al-Shabaab and a military commander with the
group; Ahmed Abdi Aw-Mohamed, alleged founder and leader of al-Shabaab; and Issa
Osman Issa who served as a commander in al-Shabaab.
Washington accuses al-Shabaab of having links to the
al-Qaida terrorist group and using intimidation and violence to undermine the
Somali government and threaten activists working for peace.
Under U.S. law, any banks accounts or other financial
assets belonging to the alleged leaders found in the United States must be
frozen. Americans also are forbidden from doing business with them.
The U.S. sanctions comes as calls mount to the United
Nations to send peacekeepers to Somalia, as well-organized piracy off the east
African nation's sprawling coast is rising dramatically in past few weeks.
Eight vessels have been seized in last two weeks,
including a massive Saudi supertanker loaded with 100 million U.S. dollars worth
of crude oil.
CAIRO, Nov. 20
(Xinhua) -- Arab countries overlooking the Red Sea promised here on Thursday to
coordinate efforts in the fight against piracy near the Red Sea region.
During an extraordinary meeting co-chaired by Egypt
and Yemen, representatives from Jordan, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Djibouti
and the Arab League (AL) discussed means of fighting against the growing threat
of piracy, the Egyptian MENA news agency reported. Full story
BEIJING, Nov. 20 (Xinhuanet) -- Despite the fact that
the U.S. Fifth Fleet is patrolling the area and NATO is also present, why is it
that the world cannot control the rampant piracy near the coast of Somalia?
The real problem, according to Commodore C Uday
Bhaskar, an Indian expert, is that there is no international coordination among
the naval powers that are patrolling the area. Full story
Saudi-owned crude oil supertanker
"Sirius Star" is seen in this photograph taken in Rotterdam on October 17,
2008. Pirates who hijacked the Sirius Star off the east coast of Africa
are taking the vessel towards a Somali port, the U.S. Navy said on Nov.
17, 2008. Picture taken October 17, 2008. The hijacked Saudi-owned
supertanker has anchored off the coast of northeastern Somalia.
(Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo
Gallery>>>
BEIJING, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese Foreign Ministry
was further checking the information about the hijack of a Chinese fishing ship
seized by Somali pirates, and would exert utmost effort to rescue the ship and
the crew aboard, according to the consular news released Friday evening by
Chinese Foreign Ministry on its web site.
Chinese Foreign Ministry was going to spare no effort to
rescue the seized ship and the crew aboard, in coordination with relevant
organizations and Chinese overseas representative offices, according to the
news. Full story
BEIJING, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Attacks by pirates off the
coast of Somalia have fiercely intensified, with five vessels reportedly
hijacked in the past week, including Saudi-owned supertanker Sirius Star, the
largest vessel ever seized at sea.
On Wednesday, a Hong Kong-flagged cargo ship was confirmed
to have been hijacked in the Gulf of Aden near the coast of Yemen. Full story
MOGADISHU, Nov. 18
(Xinhua) -- The hijacked Saudi-owned supertanker has anchored off the coast of
northeastern Somalia while eight pirates escaped from prison in the
semi-autonomous Somali region of Puntland, officials said Tuesday.
The Sirius Star, capable of carrying 2 million barrels of
crude oil, along with its international crew of 25, was hijacked over the
weekend by Somali pirates 450 miles off the coast of the Kenyan port town of
Mombasa and has since been heading towards the Somali port town of Harard here
in Puntland. Full story
NAIROBI, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Somalia pirates have
hijacked a Hong Kong cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden near the coast of Yemen, a
regional maritime official confirmed on Wednesday.
The vessel Delight, loaded with 26,000 tons of wheat,
was bound for Iran's Bandar Abbas Port when it was hijacked. Full story
NAIROBI, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- Armed gunmen have
hijacked a cargo ship carrying 23 crew off the coast of Somalia, a regional
maritime official confirmed here Sunday.
Andrew Mwangurea, the coordinator of the East Africa
Seafarers Association, said the Japanese freighter, whose crewmen include five
South Koreans, was hijacked by an armed group in waters off Somalia late on
Saturday. Full Story
NAIROBI, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- A group of unidentified
persons armed with grenade launchers and automatic weapons attacked a Chinese
fishing boat off the coast of Kenya Thursday night, a regional maritime official
said on Friday.
Andrew Mwangura, coordinator of the East African
Seafarers' Association (SAP) said the pirates hijacked the Chinese fishing boat
with 24 crew members and demanded it sail toward the coastal area off Somalia.
Full Story
PARIS, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) --
The European Union's anti-piracy operation to fight against Somali piracy will
begin on December 8,French Defense Minister Herve Morin said Wednesday.
"We proposed to our European partners to take up this
mission," said Morin. At the beginning of December, five or six warships will
begin patrolling in the Gulf of Aden where pirates infest. Full story
MOGADISHU, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- The
Islamist rebels in control of the southern port city of Kismayu Wednesday
pledged they will fight piracy off the coast of the southern Somali regions
where a Chinese fishing vessel was hijacked this week.
The Islamist Al-Shabaab group's media chief, Sheik Hassan
YakubAli, said that the group will secure the sea off the southern part of the
country saying they will form a task force to protect shipsheading to the
area. Full story
