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2008-04-04 Africa Horn

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Posted by gorb 2008-04-04 13:20|| || Front Page|| [11136 views ] Top

#1 PARIS - Pirates seized control of a French luxury yacht carrying 30 crew members Friday in the Gulf of Aden off Somalia's coast, the French government and the ship's owner said.

Attackers stormed the three-mast Le Ponant as it returned without passengers from the Seychelles, in the Indian Ocean, toward the Mediterranean Sea, said officials with French maritime transport company CMA-CGM.

"This is a blatant act of piracy," Prime Minister Francois Fillon told reporters while on a visit to Brussels. "The Defense and Foreign Ministries are mobilized to act as quickly as possible, I hope in the coming minutes or hours to try to win the freedom of these hostages."

He did not elaborate. France has considerable military resources in the region, including a base in Djibouti and a naval flotilla circulating in the Indian Ocean.

The ship was in the high seas in the Gulf of Aden, off Somalia's coast in the Indian Ocean, the ministry said. At least some of the crew members are French. The company declined to identify any other crew member nationalities.

"French authorities are handling the situation," Jean-Emmanuel Sauvee, managing director of La Compagnie des Iles du Ponant, told reporters in the southeastern city of Marseille, where his subsidiary of CMA-CGM is based. The company did not want to comment further so as not to endanger the crew members held hostage, he said.

According to the company's Web site, the 88-meter (288-foot) boat features four decks, two restaurants, and indoor and outdoor luxury lounges. It can hold up to 64 passengers.

Le Ponant was next scheduled to carry passengers as part of a 10-day, 7-night trip from Alexandria, Egypt, to Valletta, Malta starting April 19. Prices started at euro2,205 (US$3,465), not including air fare or taxes.

Posted by tu3031 2008-04-04 15:16|| 2008-04-04 15:16|| Front Page Top

#2 it was just a matter of time

Posted by sinse 2008-04-04 15:41|| 2008-04-04 15:41|| Front Page Top

#3 I believe the Legion has a base in Djibouti.
That would include choppers, and most warships can land at least one. At a time, I mean.
The anti-piracy forces there are multilateral.
So a Legion platoon might take US helicopters, stage from a Danish frigate, and get surface backup from the Brits.
Might be a problem of various forces trying to take cuts.

Posted by Richard Aubrey">Richard Aubrey 2008-04-04 15:47|| 2008-04-04 15:47|| Front Page Top

#4 Yeah, she ain't no rust bucket.
This will piss some people off. Hopefully, people in a position to have something done about it.

Posted by tu3031 2008-04-04 15:51|| 2008-04-04 15:51|| Front Page Top

#5 Here ya go:

http://www.zeco.com/about/le-ponant.asp

Posted by Chief Running Gag">Chief Running Gag 2008-04-04 16:04|| 2008-04-04 16:04|| Front Page Top

#6 Hey! Those aren't pirates, they're the UN Ambassadors from the EU!

Posted by bigjim-ky 2008-04-04 16:59|| 2008-04-04 16:59|| Front Page Top

#7 A French frigate, Le Commandant Bouan, was temporarily diverted from its role in the naval arm of Operating Enduring Freedom to track the yacht, military spokesman Cmdr. Christophe Prazuck said. A Canadian helicopter on the HCMS Charlottetown was also taking part, he said.

Posted by tu3031 2008-04-04 17:15|| 2008-04-04 17:15|| Front Page Top

#8 Time to track the pirates back to a port and make it an unusable port. Bomb the f*ckers even further back to the stone age

Posted by Frank G">Frank G 2008-04-04 20:04|| 2008-04-04 20:04|| Front Page Top

#9 frank but tHAT OULDN'T BE NICE OF US

Posted by sinse 2008-04-04 20:16|| 2008-04-04 20:16|| Front Page Top

#10 sinse - what's the downside?

Posted by Barbara Skolaut">Barbara Skolaut 2008-04-04 21:41|| http://ariellestjohndesigns.com/]">[http://ariellestjohndesigns.com/] 2008-04-04 21:41|| Front Page Top

#11 Whaddaya mean, sinse? Of course not. Never heard of "no more mister nice guy"?

Posted by Spike Uniter 2008-04-04 21:43|| 2008-04-04 21:43|| Front Page Top

#12 DGSE on full alert I bet.

Posted by OldSpook 2008-04-04 22:28|| 2008-04-04 22:28|| Front Page Top

23:30 BA
23:26 USN,Ret.
23:12 McZoid
23:10 BA
23:06 Broadhead6
23:05 Barbara Skolaut
22:58 Broadhead6
22:55 Broadhead6
22:44 SteveS
22:39 Broadhead6
22:33 Skunky Elmereter3408
22:29 BA
22:28 OldSpook
22:24 RD
22:18 Crolusing tse Tung2745
22:16 Skunky Elmereter3408
22:14 eltoroverde
22:11 Crolusing tse Tung2745
22:11 eltoroverde
22:08 JosephMendiola
22:03 Frank G
22:00 JosephMendiola
21:57 Barbara Skolaut
21:56 Frank G