US Rescues Couple Held by Somali Thugs

[Sand crab]

One for the good guys.
Raid In Somalia: U.S. Military Frees Hostages Held Since October

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Sand crab

One for the good guys.
Raid In Somalia: U.S. Military Frees Hostages Held Since October

You have to be amused when the pirates hold press conferences over the phone with AP

good one seal team 6, perhaps we could do something about the other 800 hostages , but then there're mainly Indians and Filipinos !

Dave

[capngeo]

Stories of piracy on the high seas are on topic on a criuser's forum such as this; this instance of kidnapping however, was land based and has NOTHING to do with CF.

[SunDevil]

It is 9 fewer Somali pirates though.

The international community needs to come up with a unified plan to solve this problem to make it safer to cruise off the East coast of Africa.

[jzk]

"The two aid workers appear to have been kidnapped by criminals – sometimes referred to as pirates – and not by Somalia's al-Qaida-linked militant group al-Shabab."

Well there is "investigative reporting" at its finest. Imagine that criminals were the ones that did the kidnapping....

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by SunDevil

It is 9 fewer Somali pirates though.

The international community needs to come up with a unified plan to solve this problem to make it safer to cruise off the East coast of Africa.

They do... they give out advisory's...
They do not however hand out god given rights to go where you please regardless... thats your responsibility.
Now if the average 'Cruiser' was actually of benefit to these countries they'd likely clean it up themselves.. but... we're just a bunch of tourists who expect everything to be laid on for us to our standards then moan about the cost...
Now if someone were to approach Puntland with mega bucks to build a couple of luxury marina's there along with supporting infrastructure and kickbacks..
I'm sure things would improve greatly... they've suddenly got something to defend.. so instead of being held for ransom... you'll be boarded for pilotage to the marina... 700miles away...

[four winds]

Not an investigation. A clarification.

Common criminals, not an organized terrorist group (al Shabab).

[Sand crab]

I started it in another forum and the mods moved it here which was a better fit as it is The Off Topic Forum. The point is that the thugs or pirates cannot always act with impunity. Sometimes they lose. There might be a few guys in Somalia thinking that their lifestyle choices mioght not be beneficial in the long run.

[capn_billl]

Originally Posted by capngeo

Stories of piracy on the high seas are on topic on a criuser's forum such as this; this instance of kidnapping however, was land based and has NOTHING to do with CF.

I disagree, there are 800 Hostages held by these same people, 798 were captured on the high sea, 20 from private sailboats.

Does it really matter that these two were actually captured on land, when in fact they are in the exact position we would be, if captured trying to make to the Med?

Even though there were extaneous circumstances in this particular rescue, 1. importance of captive, 2. medical emergency.

What is the difference, in this situation, and the captain that had his arm hacked off by a machete when his company refused a ransom increase?

For years we have heard from naysayers on this board that "a rescue is impossible".

Now we know the truth, if the political will is there, tools are in place to affect a rescue.

The distraction that the hostages may be hurt of killed if a rescue is even attempted, totally ignores the hostages that HAVE been hurt and killed to make a point on ransom demands.

The bottom line, kidnapping is a violent act. Violence is the only answer.

[Erik C]

It being an election year certainly helped but it shows that all these pussy footing PC politics resolve nothing and results can be achieved if the will is there. Imagine being a hostage of these guys.