Somali pirates kill 4 Americans on yacht; Navy holding suspects

Pirates need to be hanged, a fair summary trial and a speedy execution by hanging. Catch and release does not work, they think we are soft because of this. Start hanging them and they will stop.

WilliB I want you to consider this quote by a somali pirate on these people's death:

The Adams handed out bibles during their travels around the world, but a pirate who gave his name only as Hassan said religion had played no part in their death. He said the pirates reacted violently after the US forces blocked the yacht's path.

"We had plans to either take the hostages to the inland mountains or to move on to other hijacked ships because we knew that the US navy was serious about carrying out a rescue operation," Hassan said. "The hostages pleaded with us not to harm them or take them to dangerous places. They cried when we captured them ... and asked us to release them because they were too old and couldn't endure captivity."

How many Yachting enthusiasts do you know who load their boat with bibles to distribute?

To be honest I don't know any yachting enthusiasts...

smithjapan:

" Maybe these pirates were Christian as well. Who knows? "

Christian pirates from Somalia? Tell us more about this wondrous thing.

Junnama:

" The victims were yachting enthusiasts from the San Diego Yacht Club, not missionaries... That's what the loud people told me anyway... "

How many Yachting enthusiasts do you know who load their boat with bibles to distribute?

No prisoners should have been taken since no hostages were recovered.

RR

The four americans really didn't think it through. I guess they though since we are caucasians we can go anywhere and do anything we wanted to do.

Sometimes rich people have stupid ideas. I'm kind of sorry for them but they we're really stupid for sailing around the world and going through the most dangerous hotspot in the world.

Somali pirates kill 4 Americans on yacht; Navy holding suspects

Shoot them and dump them overboard.

Pirates killed hostages then surrendered? Damn , it will definitely cost American taxpayers more: cost of keeping them on ships, cost of transport ,cost of court, cost of jail...can it be just simple like the Russians or the Koreans?

WilliB: "Because under Sharia trying to prosyletize muslims is punishable by death, and bibles are blasphemy. Sheesh, how basic can you get??"

You yourself claim 'there is no need to repeat (this and that)' when people talk about how these guys were after money, but then you seem to suggest there was religious motivation behind things. Where does it talk about that? Let me guess... you saw the word 'terrorize' and made the immediate leap to Muslims, like so many bigots do. Maybe these pirates were Christian as well. Who knows? Point is, you don't, and you should not assume that they killed the people because they were Christian and carried bibles; in all likelihood they simply killed them because they felt threatened by the US warships and this was the only extreme they felt they could take (aside from firing the RPG).

I’m trying real hard to find sympathy for someone stupid enough to sail a yacht alone through pirate infested waters off the Somali coast. They didn't even bother to stay with the convoy. Their sailing yacht is not luxurious at all, it looks like a shabby kutter to me. How you sail the world with that is another question, probably everything with engine as is the fashion nowadays. The pirates had better educate themselves.

Too bad for these 4 people, no need to kill innocent folk, but time for the USA etc..to really do something about Somalia, something like a NO FLY ZONE but sure they have no planes, so maybe a NO BOAT ZONE, you see any kind of boat trying to leave off any Somali port, deal with it before they deal with innocent passengers, fishermen, etc..no time to try to waste with our Arab allies in the region to ask for help, now the Arabs are fighting for their own democracy, freedom, the USA etc..already has it and time to put and end to all of these Somali pirates, now!

Maybe, all the details aren't out yet...

Junnama - I wonder if by distributing bibles the couple would attempt to write their sailing voyage and its costs off as a tax exempt missionary expedition? Not sure how those tax laws would work.

The victims were yachting enthusiasts from the San Diego Yacht Club, not missionaries... That's what the loud people told me anyway...

And where does it say these pirates were religous fanatics? There is only the mention of them being "Motivated by million-dollar ransoms,..." and "...alcohol, drugs and prostitutes."

"...where is there any indication that they were killed because of these bibles?

"Because under Sharia trying to prosyletize muslims is punishable by death, and bibles are blasphemy."

Willi: Still haven't told me how you know this is a factual account of what happened.

True story: I was having a coffee and the folks sitting next to me were checking their iPad and making quite a ruckus about this story. When they left they apologized and said it was just that they knew the people who were kidnapped. They seemed more amused by it than anything. I wonder how they feel now? :(

paulinusa:

" You keep making assertions about bibles but where is there any indication that they were killed because of these bibles? "

Because under Sharia trying to prosyletize muslims is punishable by death, and bibles are blasphemy. Sheesh, how basic can you get??

That they were LOOKING for money and not for stupid missionaries is obvious, you don´t need to repeat that again.

"Somali pirates are businessmen"

LOL.

timeon:

" I was answering skipthesong question about the possible motives of the pirates to kidnap the yacht: they (and not me) may thought it carries some rich dudes. "

Well, that much is obvious. Clearly the last thing the pirates expected were some clueless infidel missionaries without money. Don´t know why you feel that needs to be repeated.

WilliB, if you bother to read my post, then you may understand that I was answering skipthesong question about the possible motives of the pirates to kidnap the yacht: they (and not me) may thought it carries some rich dudes.

"...the (lethal for them) bibles. Please don´t make up things."

You keep making assertions about bibles but where is there any indication that they were killed because of these bibles?

timeon:

" probably they thought the yacht carrier some bored billionaires wanting some adventure at sea "

If you`d care to read up on the story, you´d see that there was nothing billionaire about them. All their money was invested in their boat and the (lethal for them) bibles. Please don´t make up things.

WilliB: Would you actually go there and report the facts? I'm waiting.

Hmm, people were killed doing something dangerous :|

skipthesong, probably they thought the yacht carrier some bored billionaires wanting some adventure at sea. poor guys, they were too much into their religious hypnosis to realize the surrounding real world. hope the heaven they believed in exists

Naive people always go to places and think the world is one big happy planet. I feel sorry for the people involved. Somalia, and the middle-east have a lot of savagery to grow out of. Just stay away from there until they get their sh&t together.

Not saying Western countries are perfect Edens, but when it comes to civility and equality, we are a million times better.

The pirates themselves should stick with the big ships, not some four man boat

I wish we can burn all ships in Somalia for good.

paulinusa:

" They should have cut their losses and escaped or negotiated an escape. "

How??? They had no money to pay and no way to escape. And they had a boat load of bibles.

No way out of that dilemma, as I predicted yesterday, and was proven right.

They should have never gone there, period. Once they did, they sealed their fate.

haruka: That was my point. Commercial ships are what pay off big time. These guys couldn't have played this worse. They should have cut their losses and escaped or negotiated an escape.

WilliB... Not attacking your point (you seem like a bright guy) but I am quite certain these pirates are on something half the time or drunk. I have talked to a few guys who have run into them and this was just casual talk but said no doubt were on homemade meth.... Unbelievable stats btw on the CIA site.

haruka:

" Very rare for them to kill their victims. RIP "

No. It depends on the victims. Among the victims who a) have no money and b) have a boatloads of bibles and the intent to missionize, the kill rate is 100%. And you can expect it to stay that way.

You can not compare these guys with the crew of a freighter. That is comparing apples and oranges.

Very rare for them to kill their victims. RIP

Sorry, I don't think they hijacked the ship because of bibles and I don't think they were killed because of bibles. The only thing they wanted was $ (and/or to escape with their lives).

No WilliB, these hijackings are for one thing and one thing only: greed/money. That trumps religion almost any day." I take you've never been to Somalia, have you?

If we have to go in to fix this problem, I hope we aren't stupid enough to do it on the ground and play nice. They basically eff'ed us up. Oh, and the UN troops were wrothless

McC72:

" Still finding it difficult to fee sorry for these four. They knew it forehand. Rich people with extra time and money. And Bible. "

Actually, they were not rich. Apparently, they sank all of their money into their boat and the bibles and wanted to dedicate their lives to missionising.

They should have informed themselves about what they were sailing into. Clearly they failed to do that.

Still finding it difficult to fee sorry for these four. They knew it forehand. Rich people with extra time and money. And Bible.

paulinusa:

No. Greed/money is absolute a motivation, but you can not separate that from their culture. The pirates are deeply linked to Al-Shabat. And carrying bibles (and missionising to boot) is an offense punishable by death in their culture. You can like that or not, but that is reality.

No WilliB, these hijackings are for one thing and one thing only: greed/money. That trumps religion almost any day.

work in collaboration with Al-Shabat Sorry but the Al-Shabat militias are against the pirates.Know ur fact before talking. It is not about Islam or religion they are pirates, the negociations failed(?), people got killed.Nothing religious here!R.I.P to all the victims(somali + foreigners) of the Somali chaos!

paulinusa:

" Why they killed them is certainly a mystery "

No, it isn`t! You try to walk around Somalia carrying a load of bibles and see how long you live. Good grief.

Why they killed them is certainly a mystery. It would seem that the only chance they could have escaped imprisonment(or worse) would have been an agreement to free the hostages. The military MIGHT have agreed to those conditions.

my2sense:

" from what I have read they're all hardened drug users with no family except the gangs "

You don´t know any of that. That is pure speculation, by whoever wrote what you "have read".

What we do know is that the pirates operate from a Shariah society, work in collaboration with Al-Shabat, and have no moral squabbles with kill anyone.... ESPECIALLY someone who has no money (offense no. 1) and carries bibles (offense no. 2).

This situation has been out of control for a few years as the bad guys have no government (Somalia). These sickos come from a torn up country and from what I have read they're all hardened drug users with no family except the gangs they run in who have nothing. These guys have nothing to live for and they can only survive hunting down yachters for a meal and their booze, and whatever lurks back home for family. I think Obama and DoD will seriously consider looking at the root of the problem- Somalia the country without a government. My prayers for these people who saw hell before their eyes and the worst in humans. I knew when a SEAL team went in... the bad guys would go above deck with their hands up as they knew they would get a smack, translator, lawyer and hot meals for 20 years. I am still puzzled why these people rolled the dice in these waters and I would have nothing less than a gun on board if I went near it. And yes... aircraft carriers are notorious for chasing pirates at 30 knots with helos and I did it off the coast of the Philippines back in the 90s.

Exactly as I predicted yesterday.

Sailing into Somali waters with no money, but with a shipload full of bibles??

A predictable outcome if there ever was.

Very sad for the four individuals families, but seriously what where they thinking sailing through that area. And did anyone really think this was going to have a happy ending, a warsip sitting 600 metres behind the yacht is pretty much going to ensure confrontation. At the end of the day though the military cant be blamed for this its comes down to peoples choices and the consequences. Maybe its time the multinational force stopped arresting these pirates and started shooting first that seems to be the only language that they understand.