Somalia is a war torn, and highly dangerous African country located on the east coast. It is one of the most unstable nations on the planet - in fact it is hard to even characterize Somalia as a "nation". Instead of a centralized government, Somalia is divided up into smaller territories, with each respective territory currently ruled by a different government or warlord fighting for more territory. In the north lies Somaliland located adjacent to Puntland (Somalias' transitional government). Islamic militia controls a large portion of central Somalia, imposing strict Islamic law in the process. The rest of Somalia is ruled by rivaling warlords. For the money hungry, or poverty-stricken Somalian (which ever definition you prefer), there are two main advantages to living in Somalia. For one, there is little the weak and unstable government can do to a strong organized crime syndicate equipped with militia. The second advantage is that Somalia has long stretches of coastline right next to some of the busiest sea routes in the world. This creates the perfect environment for a booming piracy business.

On the 21st of August, 40 pirates equipped with AKs and RPGs (rocket propelled grenades) boarded and captured an Iranian ship. This is not an uncommon sight in and around the waters of Somalia. After docking it at a nearby port without hindrance, the pirates began their routine negotiations with the shipping company - which at this time happened to be the Islamic Republic of Iran shipping (owned by the Iranian military). Sometime after the capture of the large cargo tanker however, some of the pirates began experiencing strange medical symptoms, with some dying later. A minister of the government of Puntland has stated, "'[the ship] is not carrying a normal shipment". There is great suspicion (and absolute certainty from the Americans), that Iran is supplying the Islamic insurgents in Somalia with sophisticated weaponry under the cover of a commercial shipping company. This act only undermines the stability of the region, prolonging the war between the various fractions of Somalia. What exactly this ship contains is unclear, but it could be anything from toxic waste to poisonous gases.


More recently Somalian pirates have captured a Ukrainian ship bound for Kenya carrying a load of 33 Russian T-72 tanks and a substantial amount of ammunition. The pirates initially demanded a payment of $35 million but have brought that figure down to $20 million. Three warships, two from the EU and one American are currently chasing it down. What will happen to the ship and its crew is uncertain. There are essentially two different ways this could play out. One is that the money is payed (which is usually what happens), but a second, riskier method is to send in highly specialized commandos to seize the ship (like the French have done on two previous occasions). The main objective however is to seize the vessel before the shipment gets into the wrong hands. Thirty three advanced tanks can cause massive damage on a battlefield dominated by machine gun mounted Toyota pickups.

Piracy is an enormous business in Somalia generating over $100 million a year. It is a tested and proven get rich quick scheme for the average Somalian. While there is an international naval presence near Somalia, this has only cut down the number of attacks by a small percent. What needs to be done to eradicate piracy is to create a strong and efficient central government in Somalia that is able to crack down on pirates instead of harbouring them. This undoubtedly will be hard to achieve, but until this happens, piracy will continue to thrive.

More information will be posted when it happens.


Somalia, situated on the east coast of of Africa, forms what is known as the "Horn of Africa".