Word: ransome
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...failed to draw the world's interest to Somalia. The return of piracy to the high seas, however, has. The Somali pirates have attacked more than 100 vessels in the waters leading to and from the Suez Canal this year, and earned tens of millions of dollars in ransom. Today they are holding 17 ships with around 300 crew members off the Somali coast. And at a weekend security conference organized by the International Institute for Strategic Studies in Bahrain, headquarters to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, opinion appeared unanimous: to fix the pirates, fix Somalia. "We haven...
...hostage—or why the seemingly rational Barkley would go along with the plan—is left completely unexplained. Nonetheless, it seems the viewer is meant to root for the brothers as they carry out their plan. A rather exciting chase scene follows the payment of the ransom, and this clever sequence marks a highlight of the film. Unfortunately, it also divides “Nobel Son” between its mildly entertaining opening act and its manic, absurd conclusion. Indeed, the film veers wildly off track in its second hour. Writers Jody Savin and Randall Miller abandon...
...security companies, political parties or loose business networks. Allegations of land grabs, rape, murder and kidnapping are rife. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Afghan human rights organizations such as Samimi's have documented extortion rackets run by former warlords and militia-run prisons where captives are held for ransom. Afghan journalists covering their crimes have been harassed by police or thrown in jail. Last year Samimi received a phone call from General Abdul Rashid Dostum, a U.S. ally who was appointed by Afghan President Hamid Karzai as Army Chief of Staff, threatening to have her raped...
...With piracy being one of the few booming businesses amid the anarchy of Somalia, pirates interviewed by TIME indicated that both the Islamist militia that controls much of the country and elements of the government are inclined to extort a share of the ransom payments - tens of millions of dollars this year alone - whenever possible. The International Maritime Board's Piracy Reporting Center says 14 ships and between 250 and 300 crew members remain in captivity along the Somali coast...
...Still, the capture of the Sirius Star - and the apparent decision to pay ransom to free the MV Faina - makes clear that the efforts of Western and other nation-states to deploy warships to protect commercial shipping from piracy have not been particularly effective against a handful of men equipped with a few rocket-propelled grenades, a fleet of rusty boats and a great deal of pluck. Restrictive rules of engagement and the hazy legality of arresting pirates whose home nation has no functioning legal system have left even the U.S. Navy unable to take the fight to the pirates...