Somali pirates release hijacked SKorean tanker, crew; huge ransom reportedly paid

Somali pirates release South Korean tanker
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - Somali Pirates have freed a hijacked South Korean-operated supertanker and its 24 crew after seven months of captivity, officials said Sunday amid reports that a record ransom was paid. The Samho Dream was sailing toward a safe third country under the escort of a South Korean destroyer after being released Saturday, the South Korean Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Its 24 crew—five South Koreans and 19 Filipinos—were all safe, Ministry officials said. T...

Somali pirates release hijacked SKorean tanker, crew; huge ransom reportedly paid
Seoul, South Korea — Somali Pirates have freed a hijacked South Korean-operated supertanker and its 24 crew after seven months of captivity, officials said Sunday amid reports that a record ransom was paid. The Samho Dream was sailing toward a safe third country under the escort of a South Korean destroyer after being released Saturday, the South Korean Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Its 24 crew — five South Koreans and 19 Filipinos — were all safe, Ministry officia...

Report: Somali Pirates Release South Korean Ship
Seoul, South Korea -- Somali Pirates freed a hijacked South Korean supertanker and its crew, a South Korean news agency said Saturday. The Samho Dream is now sailing toward the United States, Yonhap news agency reported, citing Andrew Mwangura, coordinator of the East African Seafarers Assistance Program. All the sailors were safe and healthy, Mwangura said, according to Yonhap.  South Korea's Foreign Ministry said it could not immediately confirm the report. It said the release was immin...

Somali pirates receive $9.5m record ransom
Somali Pirates have received what is believed to be a record ransom of $9.5m for the release of a South Korean Oil supertanker. The Samho Dream was hijacked in the Indian Ocean in April, and its 24-strong crew taken hostage. Andrew Mwangura, the co-ordinator of the East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme, said the ransom Paid for the Samho Dream would be the Highest Paid to the Pirates since they started hijacking vessels in recent years. He confirmed that the supertanker had been freed, bu...

Report: Somali Pirates Release South Korean Ship
Seoul, South Korea -- Somali Pirates freed a hijacked South Korean supertanker and its crew, a South Korean news agency said Saturday. The Samho Dream is now sailing toward the United States, Yonhap news agency reported, citing Andrew Mwangura, coordinator of the East African Seafarers Assistance Program. All the sailors were safe and healthy, Mwangura said, according to Yonhap.  South Korea's Foreign Ministry said it could not immediately confirm the report. It said the release was immin...

Pirates release S. Korean supertanker
MOGADISHU - Somali Pirates said on Saturday they had received a record ransom of $9.5 million US for the release of Samho Dream, a South Korean Oil supertanker they hijacked in the Indian Ocean in early April this year. Andrew Mwangura, coordinator of the East African Seafarers Assistance Programme, confirmed the supertanker was free, and that a Singapore-registered ship with 19 Chinese sailors onboard hijacked in June in the Gulf of Aden had also been released. The Samho Dream, which can carr...

Somali pirates release South Korean tanker
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - Somali Pirates have freed a hijacked South Korean-operated supertanker and its 24 crew, officials said Sunday amid news reports that a record ransom was paid. The Samho Dream was sailing toward a safe third country under the escort of a South Korean destroyer after being released Saturday, the South Korean Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Its 24 crew—five South Koreans and 19 Filipinos—were all safe, Ministry officials said. The tanker, loaded with abou...

$US9 million ransom for S.Korean tanker
AFP Somali Pirates say they've received a record $US9 million ($A8.89 million) ransom in a Helicopter air drop for the release of a South Korean supertanker, Samho Dream, with 24 crew. At the same time, China's transport ministry said a Singapore-flagged cargo ship with 19 Chinese crew hijacked in June had been "rescued" from Pirates. The Samho Dream "was freed this morning after the payment of nine million dollars to my colleagues," one of the Pirates told AFP by telephone on Saturday. Adver...

Somali Pirates Receive Record Ransom
According to a recent report by The International Maritime Bureau, a maritime Watchdog, ship hijackings hit a five-year high in the first nine months of 2010, with Somali Pirates responsible for the majority. Via The BBC - Somali Pirates are reported to have received a total of $12.3M (£7.6m) in ransom money to release two ships. They are believed to have been Paid a record $9.5m (£5.8m) for Samho Dream, a South Korean Oil Tanker, and nearly $2.8m (£1.7m) for the Golden Blessing, a Singapor

Hostage shot dead by Somali pirates
Mogadishu (Reuters) - A man was shot dead on Sunday after he refused to disembark from a yacht in the Indian Ocean that was hijacked by Somali Pirates last week, Pirates and residents said on Sunday. The man was killed in Barawe town on the southern Somali coastline by Pirates who had taken him hostage and wanted him to go onshore from his yacht in which he was sailing with others, including a woman and a boy. His nationality was not immediately clear. "He was shot and killed after he refused t...

Hostage shot dead by Somali pirates
By Abdi Guled Mogadishu | Sun Nov 7, 2010 1:25pm EST Mogadishu (Reuters) - A man was shot dead on Sunday after he refused to disembark from a yacht in the Indian Ocean that was hijacked by Somali Pirates last week, Pirates and residents said on Sunday. The man was killed in Barawe town on the southern Somali coastline by Pirates who had taken him hostage and wanted him to go onshore from his yacht in which he was sailing with others, including a woman and a boy. His nationality was not immedi...

Somali pirates free two ships
Published: Nov. 6, 2010 at 9:54 PM Mogadishu, Somalia, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Somali Pirates have released two ships they commandeered on the high seas after apparently extracting millions of dollars in ransoms, officials said Saturday. Andrew Mwangura of the Seafarers Assistance Program in Kenya said less than $7 million was paid for the release of the MV Golden Blessing, a 14,445-ton Tanker filled with glycol ethylene sailing under the Singapore flag that was hijacked June 28 with 19 Chinese crew mem...

Ship hijacked by Somalia pirates released
AFP A Singapore-flagged cargo ship with 19 Chinese crew that was hijacked in June by Pirates off the coast of Somalia has been rescued, the Chinese transport ministry said on Saturday. The MV Golden Blessing, a petroleum and chemical tanker, was travelling to India from Saudi Arabia when it was hijacked in late June, maritime authorities said at the time. "The 19 Chinese crew and the ship Golden Blessing were rescued safely at 1.03am Beijing time," the ministry said in a statement posted on i...

Somali Pirates Receive Record Ransom
According to a recent report by The International Maritime Bureau, a maritime Watchdog, ship hijackings hit a five-year high in the first nine months of 2010, with Somali Pirates responsible for the majority. Via The BBC - Somali Pirates are reported to have received a total of $12.3M (£7.6m) in ransom money to release two ships. They are believed to have been Paid a record $9.5m (£5.8m) for Samho Dream, a South Korean Oil Tanker, and nearly $2.8m (£1.7m) for the Golden Blessing, a Singapor

Somali Pirates Receive Record $12.3m Ransom
BBC reports: Somali Pirates are reported to have received a total of $12.3M (£7.6m) in ransom money to release two ships. They are believed to have been Paid a record $9.5m (£5.8m) for Samho Dream, a South Korean Oil Tanker, and nearly $2.8m (£1.7m) for the Golden Blessing, a Singaporean flagged ship. “We are now counting our cash,” a pirate who gave his name as Hussein told Reuters news agency. “Soon we shall get down from the ship.” All crew are believed to be unha

Hostage shot dead by Somali pirates
Mogadishu (Reuters) – A man was shot dead on Sunday after he refused to disembark from a yacht in the Indian Ocean that was hijacked by Somali Pirates last week, Pirates and residents said on Sunday. The man was killed in Barawe town on the southern Somali coastline by Pirates who had taken him hostage and wanted him to go onshore from his yacht in which he was sailing with others, including a woman and a boy. His nationality was not immediately clear. "He was shot and killed after ...

Somali pirates shoot dead kidnapped sailor
A man was shot dead after he refused to disembark from a yacht in the Indian Ocean that was hijacked by Somali Pirates last week....

Kenyan Court Frees 17 Suspected Somali Pirates
Nairobi, Kenya-- A Kenyan lawyer says a court has freed 17 Somali men accused of Piracy who were captured by the U.S. Navy last year. Jared Magolo, who represents the 17, said Friday that a magistrate's court in the Kenyan coastal town of Mombasa ruled that there was insufficient evidence to prove that the Somali men attacked MV Amira, an Egyptian-flagged ship, in May 2009. Magolo says the magistrate blamed the loss of the case on the U.S. Navy for not providing video and photographic proof th...

Thai navy rescues Somali pirate victims
Published: Nov. 5, 2010 at 12:50 PM Bangkok, Nov. 5 (UPI) -- A Thai Navy ship taking part in anti-piracy patrols near Somalia rescued 23 crewmen from a Thai trawler attacked and seized by Pirates, naval officials said. The Thai naval force received a report Tuesday that the Sirichai Nava 11, a Yemen-registered Thai fishing vessel, had been attacked by Somali Pirates about 15 nautical miles (22.5 miles) from the coast of Yemen, the Bangkok Post reported. The HTMS Pattani, one of two Thai ships ta...

Ship hijacked by Somalia pirates released
AFP A Singapore-flagged cargo ship with 19 Chinese crew that was hijacked in June by Pirates off the coast of Somalia has been rescued, the Chinese transport ministry said on Saturday. The MV Golden Blessing, a petroleum and chemical tanker, was travelling to India from Saudi Arabia when it was hijacked in late June, maritime authorities said at the time. "The 19 Chinese crew and the ship Golden Blessing were rescued safely at 1.03am Beijing time," the ministry said in a statement posted on i...

Express.co.uk - Home of the Daily and Sunday Express
What is RSS? Britain faces power cuts unless urgent steps are taken to combat Somali Pirates targeting our Oil and gas supplies, the ­Government was warned last night. Jan Kopernicki, president of the British Chamber of Shipping, told David Cameron there was a gaping hole in the UK’s defence strategy. He said the threat from Pirates operating out of Somalia and Yemen was now so Great that seamen might refuse to serve on vessels sailing in the Gulf of Aden, the world’s shipping hig...

Somali pirates receive record ransom for ships' release
Source: BBC News Somali Pirates are reported to have received a total of $12.3M (£7.6m) in ransom money to release two ships. They are believed to have been paid a record $9.5m (£5.8m) for Samho Dream, a South Korean Oil Tanker, and nearly $2.8m (£1.7m) for the Golden Blessing, a Singaporean flagged ship. "We are now counting our cash," a pirate who gave his name as Hussein told Reuters news agency. "Soon we shall get down from the ship." All crew are believed to be unharmed. Read more: http

Somali pirates get record ransom
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Kenyan court frees 17 suspected Somali pirates
NAIROBI, Kenya -- A Kenyan lawyer says a court has freed 17 Somali men accused of Piracy who were captured by the U.S. Navy last year. Jared Magolo, who represents the 17, said Friday that a magistrate's court in the Kenyan coastal town of Mombasa ruled that there was insufficient evidence to prove that the Somali men attacked MV Amira, an Egyptian-flagged ship, in May 2009. Magolo says the magistrate blamed the loss of the case on the U.S. Navy for not providing video and photographic proof th...

Somali 'pirates' set for federal trial in US
Five Somalis accused of firing Assault Rifles at a US Navy ship off the coast of Africa are to face the first American Piracy trial in more than 100 years. The alleged Pirates are accused of shooting at the USS Nicholas in an attempt to plunder what they thought was a merchant ship. The 453ft ship shot back, forcing the men to flee in their small skiff, prosecutors said. The men were captured and transported to the US for a federal trial, which is scheduled to start tomorrow and is expected to l...