"The crew of ill-fated ro-ro ship MV LEILA is being held hostage at the port of Berbera by Somali businessmen owing to a deal which has gone sour . Captain and crew are desperate and pleaded for international assistance ," Andrew Mwangura of the East African Seafarer's Assistance Programme confirmed by telephone from Mombasa, Kenya.  The 1973 built rust-bucket is apparently in a very bad shape too and the condition of vessel and crew are deteriorating. The crew asked for urgent international intervention and assistance. ECOTERRA Intl. is giving assistance to provide relief and ensure the safe repatriation of the crew. The crew had run out of food and one crew member had to be taken already to Hargeisa for medical treatment. The harbour master of Berbera was helpful, but the court order to hold the ship still stands, though port manager and owner say the official letter would arrive soon that the vessel is free. Meanwhile the diplomatic missions of India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan have also been involved and have now all agreed to provide tickets for the evacuation of the crew already. The crew has received provisions as aid but it is hoped that also a breakthrough will be achieved by the diplomatic missions with the ship-owner to pay the over six month of salaries and to repatriate all the crew. The Somali authorities have indirectly impounded the crew, despite that they say they had not. But what do you call a situation when the Port Manager says you are free, but you are not allowed to leave the harbour, because he is obviously colluding with the shipowner, though all the crew have resigned and only want to go home with their rightful dues. The abandoned crew of MV LEILA feels that they are mistreated even worse than the pirates treat the sailors on sea-jacked ships. Obviously the official heading Berbera Ports Authority, a Mr. Omar Ali, is the main obstacle, because he said he couldn't do the one right thing to do and allow the evacuation of the expatriate crew - demanded by all diplomatic missions, whose nationals are among the crew - without instructions from his minister in Hargeisa. He, however seems to be above ministers and the Hargeisa governance. Only the Indian crew has so far been evacuated on 01. March 2009 to Nairobi. The Sri Lankan captain and his mates will also have to wait for another day, because the captain according to port manager Omar Ali has to first officially hand over the vessel and the three last of the expatriate crew will then fly out together with the two Pakistanis. The cat and mouse game however continues with no relief crew arriving in Berbera. Hostage taking by an ignorant vessel owner as well as the administration of Somaliland is the clear picture. On Saturday, 06 March 2009, the Sri Lankan captain reported that even the cook and food supplies were withheld - this problem, however, could be resolved on Sunday. ECOTERRA Intl. is searching for a qualified Somali captain and chief engineer to relieve the expat crew.

In 2005 FV SAKOBA, then registered with Malaka Shipping, Ghana, and with a crew of Kenyan-Spaniards and Kenyans was involved in a serious incident, whereby a Kenyan seaman got seriously injured off the Kenyan coast. It is therefore assumed that this vessel is not sea-jacked but operates in co-operation with the Somali sea-shifta. To be "hijacked" is a nice cover for a crooked crew to operate in criminal operations, be it illegal fishing, smuggling, trafficking or hijacking other vessels. In the clandestine world of vessels sailing under Flag of Convenience (FOC), FV SAKOBA is a special case. FV SAKOBA arrived late afternoon on 10 March 2010 at the Central Somali coast near Harardheere, where it is anchored now. The vessel was allegedly used in the sea-jacking of UBT OCEAN.
THIS INFORMATION IS ALSO A WARNING TO VESSELS TRAVERSING THE SOMALI BASIN TO BE AWARE OF LARGER VESSELS BEING USED AS PIRACY LAUNCHING PADS.

Sea-jacked British couple, Paul and Rachel Chandler, aged 58 and 55, were abducted from their 38-ft yacht S/Y LYNN RIVAL, seized October 22, 2009 en route to Tanzania, and are still held in Somalia. The yacht was recovered by the crew of UK naval vessel Waveknight, after they witnessed the transfer of the Chandlers to commandeered MV KOTA WAJAR. The yacht was brought back to England. The elderly couple is now held on land close to Harardheere, sometimes separated for fear of a commando attack . The case is turning more and more ugly with pirates becoming brutal, politicians ignorant and the financially incapable family intimidated by several sidelines, whose money-guided approach is undermining bids by local elders, human rights groups and the Somali Diaspora to get the innocent couple free. Some humanitarian efforts, however, are now under way and Somali elders, respected leaders and the Somali Diaspora have renewed their demand for an unconditional release. Latest reports from the ground say that the couple is now treated better, though they often are kept separated for fear of a military rescue attempt. The health of both elderly people is reportedly deteriorating rapidly. Relief and medicine has been sent by a humanitarian organization.

MV THERESA VIII: Seized on Nov. 16, 2009. The chemical tanker was hijacked in the southern Somali Basin, north-west of the Seychelles. The 22,294 dwt tanker has a crew of now only 28 North Koreans, since the captain of the tanker died from gunshot wounds sustained during the hijack. The vessel went sometimes to Garacad but then returned to Harardheere area, where it is held 5,3 nm off the beach. The exact main content of the vessel as well as of some additional cargo is not known and the case is shrouded in secrecy. Apparently a conflict had also developed among pirates on board and their masterminds on land. Already several times it was said that the negotiations had concluded and release operations were near, but there is still a conflict among the pirates themselves, whom the company broker had tried to divide.

MV SOCOTRA 1: Seized December 25. 2009. The vessel carrying a food cargo for a Yemeni businessman and bound for Socotra Archipelago was captured in the Gulf of Aden after it left Alshahir port in the eastern province of Hadramout. 6 crew members of Yemeni nationality were aboard. Latest information said the ship was commandeered onto the high seas between Oman and Pakistan, possibly in another piracy or smuggling mission. VESSEL STILL MISSING.

MT ST JAMES PARK: Seized December 28, 2009 at position 12°58'4N-48°34'1E which is in the Gulf of Aden International Recognised Transit Corridor (IRTC), while on voyage from Tarragona, Spain to Tha Phut, Thailand. The registered owner PHILBOX Ltd. is fronting for the management company ZODIAC MARITIME AGENCIES LTD  in London, while the beneficial owners are the Ofer Brothers - the Israeli brothers Sammy and Yehuda (Yuli) Ofer . There are 26 crew members on board including the Russian captain and their nationalities are: 6 Indian, 5 Bulgarian, 3 Russian, 3 Filipinos, 3 Turkish, 2 Romanian, 2 Ukrainian,  1 Polish, 1 Georgian. The ship was registred with MSC HOA and was transiting north west towards the International Recommended Transiting Corridor that she was expected to enter 3 Jan. The UK-flagged chemical tanker sent a security alert 14:20 GMT (17:20 Local Time) she also sent an unspecified distress message which was received by RCC Piraeus. The St James Park loaded at Assemini and Tarragona her cargo of 13,175 tonnes of 1,2-dichloroethane - commonly known by its old name of ethylene dichloride (EDC) and used in the manufacturing of plastics and not dangerous in normal carriage conditions. However, 1,2-dichloroethane is toxic (especially by inhalation due to its high vapour pressure), corrosive, highly flammable, and possibly carcinogenic. Its high solubility and 50-year half-life in anoxic aquifers make it a perennial pollutant and health risk that is very expensive to treat conventionally, requiring a method of bioremediation. The vessel's last port of call was Jeddah, where she stopped for Bunkers on 24th December 2009. The tanker was held near Garacad at the North-Eastern Somali coast.  During the night of 16./17. February a naval vessel came close and provoked heavy gun-fire from the pirates of MV ST JAMES PARK as well as from neighbouring MV RIM. After the incident, in which the naval vessel didn't return fire and left, MV ST JAMES PARK changed position first to Kulub and is now held off Dhinoowda Qoryaweyn. Negotiations have become difficult and are said to have not been finalized but are ongoing.

VC ASIAN GLORY: Seized January 02, 2010. The UK-flagged, UK-owned car carrier was taken around 620nm off the Somali coast in the Indian Ocean, while after leaving the South Korean port of Ulsan en route from Singapore to the Gulf of Aden and Saudi Arabia. The 25 crew members -- eight Bulgarians, including the captain, 10 Ukrainians, five Indians, two Romanians are said to be unharmed. DAYER MARITIME INC fronts as registered owners for the management company ZODIAC MARITIME AGENCIES LTD and the real owners, the Ofer Brothers - the Israeli brothers Sammy and Yehuda (Yuli) Ofer . The vessel was first held near Hobyo at the Central Somali coast. From there it was commandeered now twice out to sea to aid pirate motherships. VC ASIAN GLORY in both cases was after rescuing these pirates taken back to the Somali coast, in the first instance to Garacad, in the second to Danaane and the floating pirate base is now held 4.8nm off  Hobyo again at the Central Indian Ocean coast of Somalia. though Iranian media had reported her release already, stating it transported weapons destined for Saudi Arabia. Negotiations to release the vessel seem to still have not reached a conclusion.

MV RIM: Seized February 02, 2010. The North-Korean-flagged, Libyan owned general cargo vessel MV RIM was captured - en route from Eritrea to presumably Yemen  - in the north-western Gulf of Aden just south of the Yemeni coast on 2nd February 2009 . Though a coalition ship USS PORTER that works closely with EU NAVFOR and a helicopter from USS FARRAGUT, both of CMF CTF 151, confirmed that the RIM had been hijacked, EU NAVFOR headquarters first declined to confirm the report on 2nd to Somalia's anti-piracy envoy - only to report it then a day later.
EU NAVFOR then stated that the vessel was sea-jacked to the north of the Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC), was not registered with MSC HOA and has had no communications with UKMTO, the British operation in Bahrain.
The relatively small coastal cargo ship of 4,800 tonnes is still listed in the ship registers as being owned by White Sea Shipping of Tripoli in Libya, while in reality it was allegedly sold now to another company for her last cargo trip  with a load of clay and with a final destination at the scrapyards in India.

Her crew comprises at the moment of 10 sailors - all of Syrian nationality. An actual crew-list has now been provided. The vessel and crew are neither covered by an ITF Agreement nor an appropriate insurance.

The ship was first commandeered to the Somali Gulf of Aden coast near LasKorey where it encountered Puntland forces and the pirates exchanged fire with them. Then it sailed around the tip of the very Horn of Africa to Garacad on the Indian Ocean side.

The vessel has been moved from Garacad - because local elders protested - to Kulub, where it is held 5.3 nm off the shore at the North-Eastern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia. Negotiations between the pirates and the owners have commenced, while nosy naval vessels nearby drew in one case fire from the pirates. Numerous sidelines opened by Somali brokers make the case difficult.

M.S.V. ABDUL RAZAK: Seized before February 23, 2010 and after 17 November 2008 (latest contact). The 40m ship with 9 crew of Indian nationality was captured by Somali sea-shifta. on her way from Kandala to Dubai. No information concerning the condition of the crew was immediately available.
So far the vessel had been reported only as missing or lost at sea by the owner.

Reportedly a 7 men gang of sea-shifta from Garacad, a notorious pirate den at the Indian Ocean coast of North-Eastern Somalia, is/was commandeering the vessel.
Latest informations indicate that the vessel was already misused as pirate mother-ship far off in the Indian Ocean. An intensive search by ECOTERRA Intl. along the coast revealed that it is at present not at the Somali coasts.
Upcoming information says that it might have been involved in an encounter with an Asian naval vessel at the end of February 2009.

SOMALILAND LORRIES: Seized February 25, 2010. Seven lorries and at least 9 persons from their driver-crews of Isaak ethnicity from Somaliland were captured by a gang of sea-shifta from Garacad in order to press their comrades free from Somaliland jails. No financial demands have been made. According to sources close to the pirates, the trucks are been kept in small town near the pirate lair of Garacad called Kulub.

Singapore-based Nautictank. The tanker has been commandeered to the coast near Harardheere at the Central Somali Indian Ocean coast, where vessel and crew are held now 4.3 nm off the beach. It is said that FV SAKOBA was involved in the sea-jacking of the Norwegian tanker.

With the latest captures and releases now still at least 9 seized foreign vessels (11 sea-related hostage cases since yacht SY LYNN RIVAL was abandoned and taken by the British Navy) with a total of not less than 148 crew members (incl. the British sailing couple) plus at least 9 crew of the lorries held for an exchange with imprisoned pirates, are accounted for. The cases are monitored on our actual case-list, while several other cases of ships, which were observed off the coast of Somalia and have been reported or had reportedly disappeared without trace or information, are still being followed too. Over 134 incidences (including attempted attacks, averted attacks and successful sea-jackings) had been recorded for 2008 with 49 fully documented, factual sea-jacking cases for Somalia and the mistaken sinking of one sea-jacked fishing vessel and killing of her crew by the Indian naval force. For 2009 the account closed with 228 incidences (incl. averted or abandoned attacks) with 68 vessels seized for different reasons on the Somali/Yemeni captor side as well as at least TWELVE wrongful attacks (incl. one friendly fire incident) on the side of the naval forces.