NORTHWOOD HEADQUARTERS, England, (Reuters) – Somali pirates are increasingly using hijacked merchant vessels with hostage crews as giant motherships to attack deeper into the Indian Ocean, the European Union anti-piracy task force says.
Forcing the original crew to operate the ship at gunpoint, pirates can now launch attacks during stormy monsoon seasons, forcing up ransoms, security costs and shipping rates.
Until late last year, navies trying to secure regional sea lanes were facing some 500 young Somalis largely limited to skiffs and small boats powered by outboard motors and open to the elements. When naval officers referred to “motherships”, they were simply referring to the largest small boat in a group.
Even then, the pirates were wreaking havoc, redrawing shipping routes, driving up insurance costs and holding dozens of vessels and hundreds of mariners for months at a time.
