Pirates Raid the Wrong Ship..

[Hamma]

http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline...al-vessel.html

Five Somali pirates have been captured after firing on a French naval vessel by mistake, apparently thinking it was a cargo ship, the BBC reports.

French military spokesman Admiral Christophe Prazuck says the pirates attacked at night about 300 miles off the Somalia coast.

But instead of a harmless cargo vessel, they tangled (briefly) with the Somme, a French navy command and supply ship.
Admiral Prazuck told French TV station La Chaine Info that the pirates seemed to be surprised that the navy ship fought back, the BBC reports.

"Once they realized they were facing a ship that was responding and was heading towards them, they stopped shooting and attempted to flee," he said.

Oops.

I'm surprised they didn't surrender.

zing!!

[Kyonye]

I hope that one, who was caught earlier this year, gets many years in prison for Piracy. they are currently holding him in Manhattan.

[Firefly]

The French have a better RoE policy than the US. We're a bunch of pansies when it comes to handling international issues. Say what you want about the French but nowadays when they are on mission, they will not hesitate to use deadly force. About the only country I know with a stronger RoE policy is Norway. They will straight up FUCK your shit up if you so much as point a weapon in their general direction.

[Hamma]

Unless an army comes their way!

zingx2

It's cool to make fun of the french!

Seriously though the reason we are pansies is we get harassed a shitload more when we actually do something. I don't blame them for their policies really everything is always our fault when shit happens around the world.

[Baneblade]

Half of our problem is that we separate warships from law enforcement duties in international water. The US Navy has no legal right to engage a ship that isn't a military threat. And the US Coast Guard can't be everywhere at once.

[Firefly]

Somali pirates generally carry automatic weapons and RPGs. I'd consider that a military threat. The US Navy has already detained, captured, and/or killed pirates. Sounds to me as if they pretty much have lawful orders, which would stem from a legal right.

The duty of the US Navy is to protect American interests at sea - economic prosperity and international trade being just two of those interests. Furthermore, according to the US Navy's official Mission Statement "The mission of the Navy is to maintain, train and equip combat-ready Naval forces capable of winning wars, deterring aggression and maintaining freedom of the seas." Piracy is defined as an act of robbery on the high seas or a war-like act committed by a group not affiliated with any particular lawful government. Ships which carry American citizens or fly the flag of the United States are considered to be under the protection of the US Navy. Two of those talking-points within the Mission Statement are deterring aggression and maintaining freedom of the seas.

Furthermore, if that's not quite enough then the US Navy is, actually, legally authorised to engage pirates as it pertains to the universal jurisdiction of piracy. These "legal rights" as Sobekeus put it stem from the United Nations, of which the United States is a part last time I checked. The UN Conventions on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) which was drafted in 1982 after years of debate on the issue. And the UNCLOS is actually just a written "explanation", if you will, of the generally-accepted practice regarding "customary international laws".

[Baneblade]

The USN will typically work in concert with a USCG Cutter when engaging in law enforcement activity. It might have been changed, but it used to be the case that only a ship flying the USCG Ensign could legally board and detain ships. Although, I suspect it was never illegal for the USN to engage rogue armed vessels of its own volition either. I'd have to look up the specific laws to see where the actual line is between legal authorities. However, one thing I'm sure of is that the USN can't actively chase down and engage vessels that aren't an obvious threat, yet the Coast Guard can and does. So when on patrols on the seven seas, USCG's cooperation with the USN is an increasingly important thing.

Another note is that all a US Navy ship needs to do to legally act in unrestricted law enforcement capacities on its own is to fly the USCG Ensign and have a USCG officer aboard.

[Firefly]

Originally Posted by Sobekeus

Another note is that all a US Navy ship needs to do to legally act in unrestricted law enforcement capacities on its own is to fly the USCG Ensign and have a USCG officer aboard.

This is correct. All ships belonging to the US Navy have a Coast Guard officer and flag on board, for the express purpose of expediting the matter of boarding a vessel. However, pirates do not belong to any nation - hence the term "universal jurisdiction".