Navy Battles (East of Aden)

Navy Battles - 12 November 2008

British commandos killed two suspected pirates who tried to seize a Danish ship in the Gulf of Aden in an unprecedented operation involving a Royal Navy and a Russian warship, it was revealed today (12 Nov).

The suspect pirates were shot yesterday after the Royal Marine commandos, in rigid inflatable boats launched from the frigate HMS Cumberland, were fired at from a Yemeni-flagged dhow, the Ministry of Defence said.

It said the Cumberland was conducting routine Nato maritime security operations in the Gulf of Aden when a number of its crew boarded the dhow. The British crew "had reason to believe" the vessel had been involved in an attack on the Danish-registered MV Powerful earlier that day.

"Various non-forcible methods had been used in an attempt to stop the dhow but they were unsuccessful," the MoD said, adding that the inflatables circled the dhow in an attempt to stop it. People on the dhow fired at the British commandos who returned fire in self-defence, the MoD said. Two of the dhow crew were killed.

The rest of the crew surrendered and the vessel was boarded 60 miles south of the Yemeni coast.

A Yemeni national was also found injured and later died, despite receiving emergency treatment from the Cumberland's doctor. The MoD said it was unclear whether his injuries were as a result of the gunfight or a previous incident involving the pirates.

Igor Dygalo, the Russian navy's chief spokesman, told the Guardian that the Russian frigate Neustrashimy (Fearless) was also involved in yesterday's operation after the two warships were alerted as they patrolled the area.

"The pirates fired on the Danish craft with automatic weapons and tried twice to seize it," said Dygalo. He said the Neustrashimy had been escorting another Danish vessel when it was called to help.

"As with all shooting incidents, a post-shooting incident investigation is being conducted," an MoD spokesman said tonight.

The incident occurred amid mounting criticism of the failure to cope with a growing number of piracy incidents in the Gulf of Aden and off the Somali coast.

This year at least 32 ships have been hijacked in the area. A multinational naval force including US, British and German warships is patrolling the waters off Somalia in an attempt to provide security for commercial ships, many of them destined for the Suez canal.

Neustrashimy, from Russia's Black Sea fleet, was dispatched to join the effort last month. US warships from the 5th fleet continue to surround the MV Faina, a Ukrainian ship captured off Somalia by pirates demanding a $5m ransom on September 25. The ship was reportedly transporting 33 T-72 tanks as well as other arms to Kenya.

The crew – 17 Ukrainian nationals, two Russians, and one Lithuanian – yesterday managed to send an email to a journal in Kiev saying they were running out of fuel, water and food. "The last warning of the soldiers [pirates] is that if the ransom demands are not satisfied the cargo and crew will be destroyed," wrote the captives.

Dyaglo said Ukrainian representatives were holding negotiations to resolve the stand-off.