Saturday, January 22, 2011

South Koreans pull off daring rescue of pirated ship

A South Korean navy destroyer and Lynx helicopters fired warning shots at a the freighter Samho Jewelry, which was hijacked by Somali pirates on Saturday. The freighter was transporting chemicals from the United Arab Emirates to Sri Lanka when it was taken over. They responded by firing their AK-47's and rocket-propelled granades. In the end, 21 sailors were resqued, with 8 pirates dead and five others captured. The South Koreans began their secret resque mission earlier this week by following the freighter in the Arabian Sea for several days. They decided to attempt the operation when intelligence hinted at the fact that "mother ship" was leaving a Somali port.

The captain of the ship, who was shot in the stomach, was the only crew member that suffered injuries. Moreover, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak recognized the courageous resque through a nationally televised address. He also mentioned that the US military was involved in the operation by performing a medical evacuation.

Aleksandra Ruseva
http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/01/21/south.korea.pirate.rescue/index.html

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