Somalia: resistance, piracy continue

CounterVortex

An African Union convoy was struck by a road-side bomb in the Somali capital of Mogadishu [May 16], killing an unknown number of Ugandan peacekeepers. [AlJazeera, May 16] A pair of aid workers—a Kenyan and a Briton—remain in the custody of their kidnappers in northern Somalia. The kidnappers are demanding “minor” political concessions from the authorities of Puntland, the semi-autonomous and relatively stable northern region of the country. [Reuters, May 15] Two South Korean fishing boats have been seized by pirates off Somalia’s increasingly unprotected coast. [BBC, May 16]

From Madrid11.net Security Briefs, May 16

See our last posts on Somalia, Puntland and piracy.

  1. Pirates kill hostage
    From AP, June 4:

    Somali pirates who have been holding a Taiwan-flagged fishing vessel since mid-May killed one of the 16 crew members because the ship’s owners have not paid a ransom, a maritime official said on Monday.

    The pirates threatened to kill other crew members if their demands are not met, said Andrew Mwangura, head of the Kenyan chapter of the Seafarers’ Assistance Programme.

    He cited a relative of one of the captives, who was allowed to call his family.

    “The gunmen have established contact with the owner of the ship but it appears that he was giving them empty promises,” Mwangura said.

    The ship — Ching Fong Hwa 168 — had two Taiwanese and 12 Chinese crew members on board when it was hijacked 220km north-east of the Somali capital, Mogadishu. Mwangura did not know the nationality of the victim.