Piracy Ended With Military Action by US

Posted on April 14, 2009
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On April 8th, 2009, four Somali pirates boarded the small container ship Maersk Alabama and left, taking the captain hostage. Five days later, the crisis has been ended by naval sniper fire.

Adrift in the Gulf of Aden, the pirates waited with Captain Richard Phillips with the demand of two million dollars and a number of United States Naval vessels surrounding them.

FBI hostage negotiators were on board the USS Bainbridge which was the first ship to arrive in the gulf to attempt to regain Mr. Phillips. At one point the pirates contacted fellow conspirators and made plans to take the captain back to shore where they could hold him until a ransom was delivered. At roughly midnight between Thursday and Friday Phillips attempted to escape by swimming to the Bainbridge but AK-47 warning shots turned him back. Soon, the Bainbridge was accompanied by the USS Halyburton, a frigate which carries helicopters, and the USS Boxer, which is amphibious and capable of firing missiles.

Washington authorized the use of military force Friday night, Saturday morning for the captain, and the ships circled closer. Negotiations began to sour and eventually one pirate gave himself over to the Navy; he is still alive. Observers aboard the Bainbridge noticed Sunday evening, as many Americans were leaving Easter prayer services, that Phillips was tied and one of the pirates was aiming at his back. The order was given from the Bainbridge’s commander, and the remaining pirates were fired upon and Phillips was rescued soon thereafter.

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