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US captain kidnapped by pirates freed by special forces
Published in Saudi Press Agency on 12 - 04 - 2009


The US captain held hostage by Somali pirates
has been freed by American special forces in a daring rescue mission
which left three abductors dead, CNN reported Sunday, according to dpa.
Citing a senior US official, the broadcaster said US navy seals
had stormed the lifeboat after Phillips jumped overboard, killing
three pirates and taking one into custody.
Phillips, 53, is now on the nearby US warship Bainbridge, and in
good health, according to the official.
Phillips' ordeal began when his boat, the Maersk Alabama, was
attacked by pirates on Wednesday off the coast of Somalia, a
notorious piracy hotspot.
After a fight between pirates and crew, Phillips was abducted on a
lifeboat by four pirates, whilst the crew regained control of the
Alabama, which is now docked in Mombasa, Kenya.
Some unconfirmed reports from the crew suggest Phillips allowed
himself to be taken by the pirates, if the remaining crew could stay
with the Alabama.
It appeared that on Sunday Phillips for the second time attempted
to free himself by jumping overboard from the lifeboat, prompting the
rescue mission by the US special forces.
Family, friends and colleagues said they were overjoyed at the
freeing of Phillips.
"We are absolutely thrilled that Richard is safe and soon will be
reunited with his family," John Reinhart, the head of the shipping
company Maersk, said.
Reinhart said his firm was "deeply grateful" to the US Navy and
FBI for their negotiation and rescue efforts.
Reinhart said he had immediately telephoned Phillips wife, Andrea,
with news of the release.
Phillips has once before attempted to escape his abductors by
jumping overboard, but had been fired upon and recaptured.
The Alabama was brought to the Kenyan port of Mombasa on Saturday
night, where the crew appeared briefly on deck for reporters in the
harbour.
The Alabama - a 17,000-ton cargo vessel carrying food aid - was
boarded by the pirates Wednesday morning, the first time US sailors
have been seized in the treacherous waters near the Horn of Africa.
The unarmed crew quickly retook the ship, however.
The Alabama arrived under guard in the Kenyan port of Mombasa on
Saturday night, where some crew members, dressed in blue overalls and
helmets, defied orders from the FBI not to discuss the hijacking and
shouted out to waiting journalists.
Accounts from the crew said that the pirates appeared on a small
boat and then used grappling hooks to board the ship, firing shots in
the air as they came.
Phillips then reportedly gave himself up to the pirates in order
to safeguard his crew, something that second mate Ken Quinn said made
him a "hero."
In the latest of a spate of piracy incidents in the Indian Ocean
off the Somali coast, French naval forces on Friday stormed a yacht
and freed four hostages. However, two pirates and one hostage died
during the
operation.
A separate pirate group tried to steam the 20,000-ton Hansa
Stavanger - a German-owned container ship hijacked one week ago - to
help the embattled group of pirates, but was forced to return to
anchor.
In 2008, pirates seized over 40 vessels in and around the Gulf of
Aden and collected tens of millions of dollars in ransom, prompting
the international community to send warships to the region.
Around 15 warships from the European Union, a coalition task force
and individual countries such as Russia, the United States, India and
China patrol an area of about 2.85 million square kilometres.
However, the pirates are now venturing farther into the Indian
Ocean off the south-east coast of Somalia to avoid the international
patrols.
Observers have said they feel piracy can only be stopped by
dealing with insecurity on the ground in Somalia.


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