Action of 7 September 2009

Last updated
Action of 7 September 2009
Part of Operation Atalanta
BrandenburgF215 cropped.jpg
Brandenburg at anchor, 31 July 2013
Date7 September 2009
Location
Result German victory
Belligerents
Flag of Germany.svg  Germany Somali pirates
Commanders and leaders
Naval Ensign of Germany.svg Torsten Ites Unknown
Strength
1 frigate
1 helicopter
1 skiff
Casualties and losses
None 1 killed
4 captured
1 skiff captured

The action of 7 September 2009 took place when the German frigate Brandenburg, taking part of Operation Atalanta, chased and captured a pirate skiff south of Mukalla, in the Gulf of Aden, after suspicious activity was spotted on the small vessel by the frigate's helicopter during a reconnaissance mission. The boat was disabled by gunfire, and one suspect from her crew was killed. Four individuals were captured and weaponry confiscated and eventually destroyed.

Contents

Background

The German Navy became involved in Operation Atalanta on 19 December 2008, when the Bundestag approved the German naval presence in the Horn of Africa both to support World Food Programme supply ships and to combat piracy. [1]

Brandenburg began her mission on 29 June 2009, under the command of Fregattenkapitän Torsten Ites. In August, she assisted the crew of the container ship MV Hansa Stavanger when the vessel was released at Mombasa, Kenya, by Somali pirates who had captured her four months before. [2]

Action

On 7 September Brandenburg launched a Sea Lynx helicopter to perform a reconnaissance mission on a suspected skiff just south of Mukalla, Yemen. The Sea Lynx closed on and filmed five suspects on board the vessel throwing ladders and weapons overboard. The skiff was ordered to stop, but apparently refused to do so. An interpreter tried to convince the crew to stop, but to no avail. Then Brandenburg fired warning shots across her bow. As the boat continued undeterred, it was later known that the headquarters of Operation Atalanta authorized the German frigate to disable the skiff by gunfire. After the vessel was neutralized, a German Navy team from a rigid-hulled inflatable boat took control of the crew and seized a number of weapons. One of the suspects was injured by gunfire during the incident, and later died of his wounds onboard Brandenburg while receiving medical treatment. [3] [4] This was the first fatality caused by the Bundeswehr in the course of Operation Atalanta. [5] The weaponry found on board the skiff was later destroyed. [6]

Aftermath

The German Navy eventually released the four surviving suspects. The body of the suspect killed in the action was handed back to his relatives in Somalia by the International Red Cross. The Bundeswehr decided not to extradite the men to Kenya after being advised by Operation Atalanta's headquarters that the men's conviction after the trial was not granted. [5] At the time there was a deal with Kenya to judge in that country any act of piracy committed in the Indian Ocean, but on a case-by-case basis. [7] Therefore, as the attack did not affect German interests, the skiff crewmembers were left in a craft within sight of the Somali coast. [5]

Notes

  1. Antrag der Bundesregierung zur Beteiligung deutscher Streitkräfte an der EU-geführten Operation Atalanta, Bundestagsdrucksache 16/11337 vom 10. Dezember 2008 (in German)
  2. EU NAVFOR ship BRANDENBURG leads HANSA STAVANGER safely into Mombasa
  3. German frigate kills suspected pirate off Somalia AFP, 7 September 2009
  4. German Navy kills pirate suspect Marine Log, 8 September 2009
  5. 1 2 3 German navy releases suspected pirates after thwarting attack Deutsche Press-Agentur, 16 September 2009
  6. Suspected pirates released by EU NAVFOR 14 September 2009
  7. The EU fight against piracy in the Horn of Africa European External Action Service, p. 2

Coordinates: 14°03′04″N49°10′44″E / 14.05111°N 49.17889°E / 14.05111; 49.17889

Related Research Articles

Spanish frigate <i>Victoria</i> Santa María-class frigates

Victoria (F82) is the second of the six Spanish-built Santa Maria-class frigates, based on the American Oliver Hazard Perry class design, of the Spanish Navy.

HNLMS <i>Tromp</i> (F803) Frigate

HNLMS Tromp (F803) is the second De Zeven Provinciën-class frigate of the Royal Netherlands Navy. The ship was laid down in 1999, launched in 2001, and commissioned in 2003. The frigate is named after Dutch naval heroes Maarten Tromp (1598–1653) and Cornelis Tromp (1629–1691).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa</span> Military operation

Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa (OEF-HOA) is a component of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). The Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) is the primary military component assigned to accomplish the objectives of the mission. The naval components are the multinational Combined Task Force 150 (CTF-150) and Combined Task Force 151 (CTF-151) which operates under the direction of the United States Fifth Fleet. Both of these organizations have been historically part of United States Central Command. In February 2007, United States President George W. Bush announced the establishment of the United States Africa Command which took over all of the area of operations of CJTF-HOA in October 2008.

Piracy off the coast of Somalia occurs in the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel and Somali Sea, in Somali territorial waters and other surrounding areas and has a long and troubled history with different perspectives from different communities. It was initially a threat to international fishing vessels, expanding to international shipping since the consolidation of states phase of the Somali Civil War around 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Atalanta</span> European anti-pirate military operation

Operation Atalanta, formally European Union Naval ForceSomalia, is a current counter-piracy military operation at sea off the Horn of Africa and in the Western Indian Ocean, that is the first naval operation conducted by the European Union (EU). The operational headquarters is currently located at the Spanish Operation Headquarters (ESOHQ) at Naval Station Rota in Spain, having moved from London as a result of the British withdrawal from the EU.

MV <i>Tygra</i> US container vessel

MV Tygra is a container ship currently operated by the Waterman Steamship Corporation and owned by Element Shipmanagement SA of Piraeus, Greece. She was previously owned by the A.P. Moller-Maersk Group and operated by Maersk Line and Maersk Line Limited.

The April 2009 raid off Somalia was a military operation conducted by France and Germany to retake the French yacht Tanit on 9 April 2009, a yacht which had been captured by Somali pirates on 4 April 2009. It occurred during Operation Atalanta, a European Union mission in Somali waters. The pirates had attempted to extract a ransom by holding the yacht's occupants hostage, but were ultimately defeated when the French Navy assaulted them.

The MV Safmarine Asia is a ship operated by the South African shipping company Safmarine that was unsuccessfully attacked by Somali pirates on 14 April 2009. The French frigate Nivôse responded to the vessel's distress call, and in the process, found and apprehended 11 Somali pirates. There were tried for piracy in Kenya. The pirates were then landed at Mombasa for trial in Kenya on 22 April 2009.

MV Hansa Stavanger was a German container ship. Owner of the Ship was Schiffahrts-Gesellschaft MS "HANSA STAVANGER" Co. KG. The Hansa Stavanger was built In 1997 at Guangzhou Wenchong Shipyard in the Chinese city of Guangzhou. Her loading capacity is 20,526 GT & she could transport 1,550 containers on board. She was captured by Somali pirates on April 4, 2009. Around May 1, 2009, USS Boxer and a screen of German Navy warships assisted approximately 200 members of the German special police unit GSG-9 in approaching the hijacked ship. During the last phase of the operation, James L. Jones, the U.S. President's National Security Advisor, withheld final approval for the operation out of concern for the safety of the 25 sailors aboard the vessel. This led the German Federal Ministry of Defence to abort the planned attack on the freighter and the GSG-9 unit returned to their base of operations at the airport of Mombasa, Kenya.

The MV Izumi is a multi-purpose, RoLo merchant vessel. After its capture by Somali pirates it was used as the first captured merchant vessel in a novel mothership role for pirate operations that expands the pirates' operational capabilities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Ocean Shield</span> NATO operation in the Horn of Africa

Operation Ocean Shield was NATO's contribution to Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa (OEF-HOA), an anti-piracy initiative in the Indian Ocean, Guardafui Channel, Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea. It follows the earlier Operation Allied Protector. Naval operations began on 17 August 2009 after being approved by the North Atlantic Council, the program was terminated on 15 December 2016 by NATO. Operation Ocean Shield focused on protecting the ships of Operation Allied Provider, which transported relief supplies as part of the World Food Programme's mission in the region. The initiative also helped strengthen the navies and coast guards of regional states to assist in countering pirate attacks. Additionally, China, Japan and South Korea sent warships to participate in these activities.

Attack on Spanish oiler <i>Patiño</i> Terrorist attack near Somolia

On 12 January 2012 Somali pirates attacked the Spanish Navy replenishment oiler Patiño after mistaking her for a large merchant ship. The pirate skiff hit Patiño with automatic fire before being repelled, damaged by return fire and captured after a brief chase by the vessel's helicopter. The encounter took place off the coast of Somalia and ended with the death of one pirate and the capture of six others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti-piracy measures in Somalia</span> Anti-piracy in international waters

Piracy in Somalia has been a threat to international shipping since the beginning of the country's civil war in the early 1990s. Since 2005, many international organizations have expressed concern over the rise in acts of piracy. Piracy impeded the delivery of shipments and increased shipping expenses, costing an estimated $6.6 to $6.9 billion a year in global trade in 2011 according to Oceans Beyond Piracy (OBP).

German frigate <i>Brandenburg</i>

Brandenburg is a Brandenburg-class frigate of the German Navy, and the lead ship of her class.

German frigate <i>Niedersachsen</i>

Niedersachsen was a Bremen-class frigate of the German Navy. She was the second ship of the class, and the second surface warship to serve with one of the navies of Germany to be named after the state of Lower Saxony, German: Niedersachsen. Her predecessor was the minelayer Niedersachsen of the Kriegsmarine. The frigate entered service with the Bundesmarine in 1982, serving for 32 years until being decommissioned in 2015.

German frigate <i>Rheinland-Pfalz</i> (F209)

Rheinland-Pfalz was a Bremen-class frigate of the German Navy.

German frigate <i>Emden</i> (F210)

Emden was a Bremen-class frigate of the German Navy. She was the fourth ship of the class, and the fifth ship to serve with one of the navies of Germany to be named after the city of Emden, in Lower Saxony. Her predecessor was the frigate Emden of the Bundesmarine, one of the Köln class.

German frigate <i>Lübeck</i> (F214)

Lübeck was a Bremen-class frigate of the German Navy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Action of 3 March 2009</span> German Navy capturing Somali pirate skiff

The action of 3 March 2009 took place when the German Bremen-class frigateRheinland-Pfalz chased and captured a pirate skiff in the Gulf of Aden, after the persons on board the small vessel fired at and attempted to stop the German-owned tanker MV Courier. The operation marked the first time that the German Navy captured a hostile vessel at sea since World War II.