Pirates Cause Shootout at Sea

By Pamela Mortimer

A U.S. defense official has reported that the U.S. destroyer USS Howard was joined by other American ships in an effort to stop a hijacked Ukrainian ship from leaving the coast of Somalia. The ship, containing tanks and other heavy weapons, was hijacked by Somali pirates on Thursday. The pirates have demanded a ransom of $20 million.

Pirates hijacked the blue and white Ukrainian ship Faina with its cargo of 33 Soviet-designed weapons and tanks while the ship was making its way through the Gulf of Aden en route to a port in Mombassa. Aden is one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.

The U.S. Navy is attempting to keep any of the weapons from making it from the cargo ship Faina to the shore of what has been referred to as "lawless Somalia." The unidentified defense official also stated that there had been a shootout between the pirates following a disagreement on Monday night, leaving three pirates dead. The same unconfirmed report was cited by Andrew Mwangura of the East African Seafarers' Assistance Program. Mwangura did not speak to any witnesses.

There has been no confirmation of the shootout and the pirates have denied the report.

Pirate spokesman Sugule Ali told the AP that everything was fine and that the group was in the midst of celebrating the Muslim feast of Eid al-Fitr despite being surrounded by warships and helicopters. Eid al-Fitr is a traditional feast that is celebrated at the end of Ramadan.

"We didn't dispute over a single thing, let alone have a shootout," pirate spokesman Sugule Ali said.

"We are happy on the ship and we are celebrating Eid," Ali said. "Nothing has changed."

Ali reported that Faina was surrounded by four warships but their identity was unknown. The USS Howard, a guided missile destroyer based in San Diego, has been observing Faina for several days and officials have spoken to the pirates and crew by radio.

Faina is not the only ship to have had its share of troubles this week. Pirates released a Malaysian tanker on Tuesday after they received a ransom from a Malaysian shipping company.

The number of ships hijacked in African waters is staggering. So far this year, 62 ships have been attacked in the area. Of those ships, 26 were hijacked. Of the 26, 12 ships, including their crew members, are still in the clutches of the pirates.