[xtypo_dropcap]B[/xtypo_dropcap]efore dawn the day after the capture of the German-owned container ship by pirates on Wednesday, Aug. 24, U.S. Marines gained control of the ship in the Gulf of Aden, and arrested nine suspected pirates. No shots were fired and the Magellan Star was safely returned to the hidden 11-man crew. The attack was launched from the USS Dubuque, which assisted the international anti-piracy task force in the area.
Helicopters coordinated the recapture of the drifting 8,000-ton vessel. The crew managed to stop the engines before hiding in a safe room. According to reports, the ships’ German owners said the pirates contacted them three hours after the capture. The pirates were unable to find the crew or to switch the engines on. They pressed an emergency button to contact the company. According to a spokesman the pirates were told “the crew was on holiday,” and the engines were broken. The crew, hid in the safe room, contacted the TCG Gokceada, a Turkish partrol vessel, part of the same international force protecting merchant vessels in the Gulf of Aden from piracy.
Helicopters coordinated the recapture of the drifting 8,000-ton vessel. The crew managed to stop the engines before hiding in a safe room. According to reports, the ships’ German owners said the pirates contacted them three hours after the capture. The pirates were unable to find the crew or to switch the engines on. They pressed an emergency button to contact the company. According to a spokesman the pirates were told “the crew was on holiday,” and the engines were broken. The crew, hid in the safe room, contacted the TCG Gokceada, a Turkish partrol vessel, part of the same international force protecting merchant vessels in the Gulf of Aden from piracy.
