Pirates say the yacht will make landfall in Somalia on Sunday, which would reduce the chances of a fast rescue dramatically. A British sailing couple hijacked by pirates was held hostage in a stiflingly hot Somali region for more than a year.
Pirates hijacked the yacht Quest on Friday, two days after a Somali pirate was sentenced to 33 years in prison by a New York court for the 2009 hijacking of the Maersk Alabama. That case ended in a spectacular rescue when Navy sharpshooters killed two pirates holding the ship's captain, Richard Phillips.
The Quest is the home of Jean and Scott Adam, a couple from California who has been sailing around the world since December 2004, according to a website the Adams keep. Two other Americans were also believed to be on board.
The pirates are unlikely to hurt the four Americans because they won't win any ransom money if they do, said Graeme Gibbon-Brooks, the head of Dryad Maritime Intelligence. He argued that the pirates would be wise to abandon the yacht because the hijacking threatens their business model, which relies on ransoms from large shipping and insurance companies.
"They risk the collapse of their business model if they change their status quo and the American government deems that they pose an immediate threat to the safety of American citizens," he said. "They've made a mistake and it's in the Somalis' business interest to get off the yacht as soon as possible."Read More
No comments:
Post a Comment