US NAVAL commandos dramatically freed the American ship captain held hostage on a lifeboat off Somalia yesterday, killing three pirates and capturing one.
Military officials said last night that Richard Phillips (53) was unharmed in the raid, which took place in the Indian Ocean, dozens of miles from shore. The gunmen had been holding Capt Phillips for five days after he volunteered to board the lifeboat with them in order to protect his crew, following a botched hijacking.
“I can tell you that he is free and that he is safe,” Lieut Commander John Daniels said.
Following a brief firefight, Capt Phillips was taken aboard the USS Bainbridge, one of the three US warships tracking the lifeboat, which had run out of fuel. According to CNN, Capt Phillips jumped overboard during the raid.
The rescue attempt was launched after several days of fruitless negotiations between the FBI, Somali elders and the pirates. The lifeboat had been drifting closer to land, which US military officials feared would allow the pirates to escape with Capt Phillips.
His container ship, the Maersk Alabama, was briefly hijacked more than 483km (300 miles) off Somalia's east coast on Wednesday, but the all-American crew of 20 quickly regained control, despite being unarmed.
The situation had become increasingly tense since Friday, when Capt Phillips attempted to escape by swimming to a nearby warship before being hauled back on the lifeboat.
The pirates would also have received news the same day of the French special forces raid to free a yacht, in which two pirates and a hostage were killed. Armed with AK-47s and a grenade launcher, the gunmen fired at a small US navy vessel that approached them on Saturday, forcing the vessel to withdraw. They had reportedly demanded safe passage to Somalia and a ransom for the release of Capt Phillips.
The lifeboat was kept under surveillance, with helicopters and a plane circling overhead. At night a spotlight from one of the warships was targeted on the boat. There was also surveillance on land. Residents of Haradhere, a pirate hideout halfway up Somalia’s east coast, reported seeing two helicopters circling the area yesterday morning.
The Maersk Alabamadocked in Mombasa, Kenya, yesterday, with the 19 crew members unharmed. Last night, when the crew heard of their captain's release, they draped an American flag over the rail of the ship and whistled and pumped their fists in the air.
In the dozens of previous hijackings by Somali pirates in the last few years, ship owners and governments have been prepared to negotiate and pay ransoms to secure hostages’ release. Before yesterday’s raid, France had been the only country to take a military approach to free its citizens, twice attacking pirates last year, once while hostages were still on board.
The third raid on Friday ended in tragedy, when a 28-year-old Frenchman, Florent Lemacon, was killed as commandos freed his yacht, Tanit, from a pirate gang in the Gulf of Aden. He was shot dead below deck during the firefight.
Up to a dozen pirates have been killed in recent months, most during attempted hijackings, and more than 100 have been arrested by foreign warships patrolling the Gulf of Aden. But the deaths and detentions appear to have little deterrent effect on the pirate gangs, with five ships having been captured last week alone. On Saturday an Italian tugboat was hijacked with 10 Italians, five Romanians and a Croat on board, and it reached the Somali coast yesterday. About 18 other ships are also being held, with more than 250 foreign hostages on board.
While Somali pirates have always treated hostages reasonably in the past – none have been killed – maritime analysts said the latest French and US actions may change the way pirates behave.
Meanwhile, four rescued hostages from the Tanitreturned to French soil as tributes were paid to the "pacifistic" skipper who died while protecting his wife and son with a mattress.
Chloe Lemacon and three-year-old Colin arrived at a military airport outside of Paris, where they were met by defence minister Herve Morin. They were accompanied by two friends, a couple also freed in the shoot-out.
Officials refused to say whether the body of Mr Lemacon (28) was on board the flight from Djibouti.
Defence ministry officials said the computer programmer from Brittany had earlier been trying to shield his wife and son behind a mattress. Asked to elaborate on the circumstances of the death, Mr Morin admitted on Saturday he “could not rule out” the possibility that Lemacon had been killed by a French bullet.
Francis Lemacon, Florent’s father, said he was “crushed” by the death of his son, whom he described as a “pacifist” and “dreamer” who had rejected western materialism.
Defending the couple's decision to take their son on a risky voyage, he said: "[They] chose a lifestyle. In their own way they were fighting with deeply held convictions for the right to live differently." – ( Guardianservice)