Pirates hijack Malaysian tanker off Somalia coast

Pirates hijack Malaysian tanker off Somalia coast

Just fyi. Pls read.

Kismayo under Islamic control...
:eek:
Islamic militants control key Somali port
Sat., Aug. 23, 2008 - Violence comes amid report that two foreign journalists are kidnapped

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Islamic militants said Saturday they had seized control of Somalia’s third largest city after three days of fighting that left about 70 people dead and saw thousands flee Kismayo.

The Islamic courts movement, which controlled the capital, Mogadishu, and much of the south for six months in 2006, said it wrested control of the southern port city of Kismayo from clan militias.

About 70 people were killed during the fighting which started Wednesday and 170 were wounded, said Dr. Ali Hassan of Kismayo Hospital. “Medicine is scarce and there is only one doctor and a few nurses. That shows how we are unable to cope," said Hassan.

[url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26365055/:
Two journalists kidnapped[/url]

Habib forgets to bring the long ladder...
:p
Somalia: Four pirate attacks in 24 hours
4 Oct.`08 - There have been four failed pirate attacks in the last 24 hours off Somalia; Attacks come despite presence of six American warships; Eight European countries have offered to help form an anti-piracy force

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There have been four failed pirate attacks in the last 24 hours off the lawless Somali coast despite the presence of six American warships guarding a hijacked ship full of weapons, a U.S. Navy spokeswoman said Saturday. Navy Cmdr. Jane Campbell, from the 5th Fleet in Bahrain, says three attacks were averted because crew members escaped at high speed. Another attack was foiled because the pirates were badly prepared: The ladder they had brought to climb on to the ship was too short.

The Navy says three of the attacks were in the heavily patrolled corridor within the Gulf of Aden. The location of another was not precisely known but was somewhere off the Somali coast. Last week’s attack on a Ukrainian ship laden with 33 Soviet-designed tanks and weapons has focused international attention on piracy in Somalia. American officials have expressed fears the weapons onboard the MV Faina could fall into the hands of Somalia’s al Qaeda-linked Islamic insurgency.

Eight European countries have offered to help form an anti-piracy force. On Friday, Russia called for greater efforts to protect the Gulf of Aden waters, one of the world’s most important shipping lanes. There have been nearly 70 pirate attacks this year and some 26 ships successfully hijacked.

[url=http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/10/04/somalia.priates.attacks.ap/index.html:
Source[/url]