Maria Dolores: US charter reached Valetta

Philip J. Crowley, a State Department spokesman, said at least 167 Americans were on board the ferry Maria Dolores. The State Department has said 40 members of the United States Embassy as well as family members were among the passengers boatrded in Tripoli Libya which has now reached Valetta, malta.
Overall length
68.4m
Waterline length
58.8m
Beam moulded
18.2m
Hull depth moulded
6.3m
Hull draft (maximum)
2.6m
Deadweight (maximum)
260t
Passengers
600


earlier

Horten: old frigates and Yemeni guards

Maybe a submarine?


ISIM Sinin Ltd. is the Maltese corporation owning the handymax bulker Sinin
ISI Maritime Ltd. (Malta)

• Tehran, Iran
• Founded in 2008
• Registered in Malta
ISI Maritime Ltd. is the registered owner of the Sattar. According to IHS Fairplay, this company is a subsidiary of the IranoHind Shipping company, a company the United States Treasury Department has designated as linked to Irisl and therefore subject to sanctions. ISI Maritime also is a major shareholder in Isim Sinin Ltd. and Isim ATR Ltd., two other Irisl-linked companies.

Norwegian navy has sold its frigate Horten to a former military officer and UN captain, Svein Johnsen and an anonymous partner,will use it to keep pirates at bay. Financing for Clear Ocean was in place Clear Ocean, will include the frigate, up to eight new ships, six helicopters and a surveillance plane, to patrol the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia.

The vessels will be armed, and the helicopters will be used to localize pirates. Officially, Clear Ocean has a 10-year contract with the government of Somalia to protect Somalia’s fishing fleet. “We are to protect fishing vessels who will pay for the fishing rights which again will increase the revenue in the fisheries for the government,” Clear Ocean was “not in the business of chasing or arresting pirates” and that the weapons on board are “to protect our own assets and customers, if we are asked to protect Norwegian shipowners, we will of course do so,” for a price to be negotiated.
Clear Ocean’s vessels will have a weapons system on board that can stop a boat from a distance of two kilometers. “If the pirates don’t stop before getting within 800 meters of us, they will be stopped,”
The defense ministry said it had no qualms about the planned operations for the Horten, which even has served as a temporary royal yacht in Norway. “We are glad the ship was sold and we got a good price (NOK 45 million) for it.” “We have no opinions about how it will now be outfitted or used. We hope it can be used in a positive way in the area.”
The boss of Norwegian shipowning company Stolt-Nielsen announced his family-owned firm now has armed guards on board Stolt-Nielsen vessels off the coast of Africa.

“We would gladly avoid having to do this, but we have no choice,” Niels G Stolt-Nielsen, “When we don’t have a convoy or patrol boats in the area, we’re hiring in armed guards from Yemen’s naval defense forces.”

Stolt-Nielsen called the pirates “terrorists,” and claimed that “the only language (they) understand is warning shots. Then they’ll back off.” He said armed guards are necessary. “There are people on board the ships who need to be protected,” he said, along with the value of the vessels and their cargoes.

Stolt-Nielsen, Frontline and Fred Olsen are trying to fight back. Frontline, controlled by tanker tycoon John Fredriksen, and veteran shipowner Fred Olsen are considering having armed staff on board, but won’t go into detail.

“We don’t have any weapons on board, not yet,” Olsen“the entire industry is drafting this now.” Olav Eikrem, technical director at Frontline also said he wouldn’t rule out having armed guards on board “soon.”

earlier

SININ: IRISL handymax bulker hijacked

approximately 350 nautical miles East of Masirah (Oman) in the North Arabian Sea, having sent out a distress signal, saying she was under attack, February 12, USN aircraft photographed 2 suspected pirate skiffs on board the vessel, now headed for the Somali coast.
9274941 SININ 9HOD8 Bulker 52466 2005 Malta

Sinin (Ex: Laurinda) 52,466 DWT, Bulk Carrier, Built 2005
Owners/Managers are Irano-Hind Shpg. Co., Built at Tsuneishi Cebu, Malta Flagged, BV Classed, Length Overall of 189.99 m., Length Between Perpendiculars of 182.87 m., Draught of 12.02 m., Beam of 32.26 m., Gross Tonnage of 30,064, B. & W. Engine, Speed of 14.50 kts at 28.50 tonnes per day, Heavy Fuel Oil, Horsepower of 10,600B at 116, Bunker Capacity of 2,386 tonnes.
Owner/Manager Details
Irano-Hind Shipping Co. Ltd.
Specialised Details
Grain Capacity of 67,756 cu.m., Fore & aft hatches, Hydraulically operated, 5 Holds, 5 Hatches, 4 Crane(s) with a safe working load of 30 tonnes.
Additional information
IDENTIFICATION: Exname is Laurinda. Handymax Bulker, Call Sign 9HOD8, IMO Number 9274941. DIMENSIONS/TONNAGES: Moulded Depth of 17.00 m., Tonnage of 24,910 Panama Canal Net, 28,402 Suez Canal Net, 17,927 International Net and 51,637 Dwt (long). ENGINE DETAILS: Engine Description 2 S.A. 6-cyl., Engine Model 6S50MC, 1 fixed pitch Propellor. CARGO HANDLING: Bale Capacity of 65,601 cu.m. SAFETY AND OTHER DETAILS: Last known special survey in May 2005, Ballast Capacity of 15,407 tonnes.


Jun 12, 2002:- The Shipping Corporation of India will continue to be a partner with the Iranian government in the Irano Hind Shipping Co after disinvestment.

According to senior officials, New Delhi has conveyed to Teheran that it stands committed to the joint venture even after its privatisation which is expected to take place by next month.

SCI has a 49 per cent equity holding in the joint venture company which has a majority holding by the state-owned Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines.

Sources said the reassurance to the Iranian government has been informally conveyed since the joint venture was conceived as a government-to-government partnership way back in 1974.

The government has decided to offload 51 per cent equity in SCI in favour of a strategic partner while at the same time passing off 3.12 per cent shares to the employees. The government currently holds 80.12 per cent stake in the public sector shipping giant.


Iran o Hind Shipping Company
Also Known As:
Keshtirani Iran Ve Hend Sahami Khass
Irano Hind Shipping Company
Iranohind Shipping Company (PJS)
IHSC
Iran and India Shipping Company
Iran Hind Shipping Company
Irano Hind
Irano Hind Shiping Co. (P.J.S)
Irano-hind Shipping Company
Irano-hind
Irano-hind Shipping Co
Iran and India Shipping Co.
Iranohind Shipping Co.
Keshtirani Iran Ve Hend Sahami Khass
Iran O Hand Shipping Co.
IranoHind Shipping Co. Ltd.

Subsidiary of Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL - see separate entity record); listed in Annex III of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1929 of June 9, 2010, requiring states to freeze its assets within their territories and to prevent assets from being made available to it (with some exceptions); on September 10, 2008, added to the Specially Designated National (SDN) list maintained by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), freezing its assets under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibiting transactions with U.S. parties, pursuant to Executive Order 13382, which targets proliferators of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and their delivery systems; according to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, IRISL and affiliates provide logistical services to Iran's Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL - see separate entity record); owns six oceangoing vessels transporting crude oil and bulk and general cargo; subsidiaries include ISI Maritime Limited and Jaladhi Shipping Services (India) Private Limited; other subsidiaries reportedly include BIIS Maritime, Imir Ltd., and Isim Atr Ltd.; established as a joint venture between IRISL (51 percent) and Shipping Corporation of India-SCI (49 percent); reportedly established in 1975; commercial director is Ardasheer Yousefi.

Samho Jewelry: Serum, Ali, Brallat, Arai, arrested

The South Korean Busan District Court approved the issuance of arrest warrants in the hijacking of Samho Jewelry for the suspects ― identified as Serum Abdullah, Ali Abdullah, Ali Abukad-Aeman, Brallat Aul and Arai Mahomed ― on suspicions of maritime robbery and attempted murder.
“Many of them do not speak Arabic, which is widely used in Somalia. Since their country has been engaged in internal feuds for decades, there are barely any documents to certify their identification,” an official added.

Meanwhile, the government is planning to bury the bodies of the eight dead pirates at sea as the Somali government has been lukewarm in taking them. Seoul officials called the offered handover a humanitarian approach, but the Omani government, who stepped forward as a mediator, said it is yet to receive any response from the Somali counterpart.

Samho Jewelry, registered in Valletta, Malta [Malta-flag] by Global Shipholding 1, an investment product of Acta Holding ASA, Stavanger, Norway, with a bareboat charter back to Samho Shipping Company, South Korea, the disponent owner of the vessel.
see
compare
US Navy

Samho Jewelry: no direct negotiations with pirates

The government remains firm not to directly negotiate with the pirates or pay ransom. Foreign Ministry said it will "not get dragged into" the psychological warfare often launched by the Somali pirates. Korea Herald Korean ships sail through the waters more than 500 times a year, so protecting all of them is impossible. Dong-A Ilbo "From March to October last year, a total of 925 Korean vessels passed by the waters off Somalia. More than 20 percent of the ships that pass through this pirate-infested region of the world are Korean-flagged vessels, and some 29 percent of its shipping freight must sail through this danger zone. JoonAng Daily Ships operated by large Korean conglomerates apparently hire former special forces soldiers who served in Eastern Europe or Central Asia, paying them more than $10,000 a day during the five to seven days the ship passes through pirate-infested waters. In most countries, It is no use deploying the destroyers after a commercial ship has been hijacked and it could actually endanger the lives of the hostages. Chosen Ilbo The news comes as a blow for Samho Shipping after it wrapped up a nightmarish seven months of negotiations with Somali pirates last November for the return of the Samho Dream, which was hijacked last April. The negotiations were reported to have been dragged out by major investors in the pirate ring, who kept hiking up the ransom amount.

The company ended up paying $9.5 million. earlier

Samho Jewelry: Samho Shipping chemtanker

Samho Jewelry, Malta-flag, 19924 dwt chemical carrier, from the United Arab Emirates to Sri Lanka hijacked January 15Somali pirates seized a South Korean freighter with 21 crew members in the Arabian Sea, South Korea's government said Saturday. the Samho Dream, a South Korean supertanker, was hijacked and released in 2010. here and more
Washington Post

9249594 SAMHO JEWELRY 9HHF9 Tanker 19924 2001 Malta

Arctic Sea: at sea having passed Volko, Finland

This phantom Malta-flag, russian-controlled vessel destined for Volko Finland is instead headed West at 31.1 miles from Harjumaa, Estonia. According to Interfax Arctic Sea has been sold for 2.3 million dollars to an unknown buyer. According to a sales agent at the equivalent of approximately 1.69 million euros.

Arctic Sea: Russian investigators still aboard

The captain and three crew members were still on board the MV Arctic Sea 30 October, along with Russian investigators. The ship berthed, 14 nautical miles east of Marsaxlokk, Valetta, Malta. The ship berthed early yesterday morning and not as expected last night. The ship had some steering gear problems which resulted in a slight delay in towing. “As we did not want the towing to take place in pitch darkness, we decided to wait an extra day,” said John Gatt, chairman of the National Maritime Security Committee.

The MV Arctic Sea is seen berthed in Senglea

$3.5 million ransom for Malta-flagged Ariana

"We are just waiting for the money," said pirate Hassan of Haradheere. MV Ariana, IMO number :8014150, was seized on May 2 north of Madagascar en route to the Middle East from Brazil with 24 Ukrainian crew aboard. All Oceans shipping in Greece is the beneficial owner.

Mikhail Voitenko believes Nato knew exactly what had happened to the Maltese-flagged Arctic Sea.

A Nato spokesman said the alliance had been in contact with Russia throughout the crisis, but would not say anything more.

Russian Arctic Sea crew back home

NTV television says 11 crewmen arrived Saturday in the northern city of Arkhangelsk. It aired footage Sunday of reunions with relatives on a railroad platform. Russian authorities have charged eight men of different nationalities of hijacked the the Arctic Sea which was on it way from Finland to north Africa with timber. The investigation into the hijacking is made more complicated by the fact that the ship flies under the Maltese flag, the shipping line is Finnish, but is under Russian ownership, the entire crew are Russian, and the hijackers are apparently from the Baltic countries.

The original destination of the Arctic Sea was Algeria. The ship is being towed by the Russian Navy.
“I am surprised that the ship wasn’t refuelled in Cape Verde. Fuel is available in all harbours. Perhaps the navy wants to keep the ship in its own hands.”

The Finnish owners of the vessel’s cargo said they were simply shipping redwood for windows and doors in Algeria.

“We sold the timber to three customers in Algeria.” He declined to give the customers’ names.

The police have not questioned the company about the ship and its freight. Rets Timber, a joint venture between Europe’s largest papermaker, Stora Enso Oyj, and UPM-Kymmene Oyj, Kari Naumanen, chief executive officer at Helsinki-based Rets. Most of the lumber came from other companies. here

The Russian tabloid Moskovsky Komsomolets, citing Russian security sources, said the Arctic Sea was smuggling arms and that the hijackers were stooges hired by the intelligence service of an EU member state to intercept it. Suspected hijacker, Russian Dmitry Bartenev’s brother said he believed that the hijacking suspects had been caught up in “political games.”

“I think they were framed, and it is not just my opinion, everybody who knows them also thinks so,” Alexei Bartenev. “They were seeking a job and got involved in a political conflict, were made hostages of a political game.” He did not elaborate.
Sweden, Malta and Finland have been called upon by Russia to help answer questions in the investigation into the hijacking and disappearance this summer of the "Arctic Sea" freighter. "But what else it is actually transporting. It has yet to be clarified," Nikolai Makarov, chief of Russia's general staff, told reporters during an official visit to Mongolia.

"We want to make sure that there is nothing but timber on board this ship. The motive for the seizure is simply not very clear," said Makarov.

Authorities in Finland, which the Arctic Sea departed from on July 23, have said it was not carrying any radioactive cargo.

Arctic Sea: Love that Chendin 2/dul/dhool

The Foreign Ministry said that, when the ship was intercepted, its captain claimed it was the North Korean vessel Chendin-2, and was headed from Havana to Sierra Leone with a cargo of palm wood.

It said North Korea had asserted that was impossible, saying the Chendin-2 was docked at an Angolan port at the time. The Russian navy's search of the ship ''confirmed the suggestion that it was really the Arctic Sea."

1. How did the Arctic Sea's captain know about the Chendin-2. Can you find it?
2. The Russians needed to ask the North Koreans? What about binoculars. The Maltese-flagged ship says 'Arctic Sea' on the bow and stern, Or does it?
3. Why the Foreign Ministry and not the Investigative Committee in charge of the hijackers?

Crew in custody for protection as witnesses

The Finnish National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has not received any information on why the crew was also being held, and if they were suspected of wrongdoing.
Russian prosecutors said 24 August that the crew had been placed in custody, because they needed protection as witnesses. The Federal Penitentiary Service (FPS) of Russia has denied a mass media report that crew members of the Arctic Sea dry cargo ship, on being freed from the pirates’ detention, are held in the Lefortovo investigation ward in Moscow, the FPS spokesman said investigation FPS ward-2, just as any other investigation ward in Russia, holds persons only on court ruling.

The Federal Penitentiary Service did not specify the whereabouts of 11 crewmembers of the Arctic Sea taken to Moscow.

Mikhail Voitenko, editor of Russia's Sovfracht has said: "The only sensible answer is that the vessel was loaded secretly with something we don't know anything about."

Arctic Sea: If the Finns packed guided missiles

Dmitry Rogozin: That was ugly speculation. When a country like ours encounters a problem like this, one often gets the most outlandish speculation. One Estonian admiral astonished us with his cynicism and incompetence.

SPIEGEL: ... who do you mean?

Rogozin: I don't want to say the name, but I mean the former head of the Estonian armed forces, the EU rapporteur on piracy.

SPIEGEL: You are referring to Admiral Tarmo Kouts.

Rogozin: He suggested Russia was transporting rockets or guided missiles to Iran on the ship. The admiral of this seafaring power appears to have problems with geography. It's quicker to reach Iran via the Caspian Sea. The speculation that arose about this was simply nonsense, irresponsible.

SPIEGEL: There was also a rumor that the Arctic Sea had loaded an ominous freight in Kaliningrad before it set sail.

Rogozin: It's nothing more than Russophobia. Kaliningrad is rubbish too. If the Finns packed guided missiles in along with the timber, that would be up to them.

Arctic Sea: truth will never come out

Crew members have told Russian news reporters that they have been told not to disclose "state secrets", while well-informed Russian marine journalists have said they are now wary of commenting further on the case. And the explanations proffered by the alleged pirates have raised more questions than they answer. When quizzed on Russian state TV last week, Mr Lunev said he was working with an ecological group, who approached the Arctic Sea for help when their own inflatable ran out of petrol. But when asked what the group's name was, he answered: "I don't know. It was some private organisation."

Even the suspects' extensive tattoos - normally a reliable guide to identifying different sub-tribes of the Russian Mafia - have caused bafflement. "It is clear they are not our criminals, said Alexander Sidorov, the author of Russian Criminal Tattoos book, after examining TV footage.

"Security Police [Estonia] said that it’s possible to say on that photo and video material published in the international media, that suspects are similar with people, about whose involvement Security Police has earlier information."

Äripäev - Baltic Business News

According to the Estonian Security Police and the chief prosecutor's office the six residents of Estonia held by Russia in connection with the case include one Estonian citizen, two Russian citizens and three persons of undefined citizenship.

Foreign Minister Paet said: "It's regrettable that it took the Russian authorities so long to inform Estonia, even though the Russian minister of defense supplied information to the media already at the beginning of this week. In accordance with good practice one would inform the countries concerned about the detention of offenders before informing the public."

Arctic Sea: alleged hijackers deny everything

Leaving court on Friday, Dmitry Bartenev said: "We were caught in a storm and were forced to evacuate to the nearest ship."

Defendant Dmitry Bartenev, 41, an unemployed Russian citizen living in Estonia, was dragged handcuffed through the court room and arrested. His head bowed in a cage, he said solving the maritime mystery was not in Russia's jurisdiction.

"A Russian court does not have the right to hear this case. The alleged illegal act happened in Swedish waters on a ship with a Maltese flag."

Maltese-flagged cargo vessel Arctic Sea is owned by Solchart, based in Finland with Russian executives. "We are appealing to all officials with a request to show humanity and provide Solchart with any reliable information on the crew and the vessel," Viktor Matveyev, managing director of the Finnish company, said.

Arctic Sea: White Nights Adventure

In areas of high latitude, Russia, Sweden, Finland, when sunsets are late, sunrises are early and darkness is never complete, the White Nights are a time of celebration. 24 July and following are White Nights, a time of carefree frolicking.
Crew members have confirmed details about the hijacking that were reported earlier.

Актуально
Продолжается расследование уголовного дела о похищении экипажа судна «Arctic Sea»
20.08.2009
Главное следственное управление Следственного комитета при прокуратуре России продолжает расследование уголовного дела по факту похищения граждан Российской Федерации - экипажа судна «Arctic Sea», возбужденного по признакам преступления, предусмотренного п. «а» ч. 3 ст. 126 УК РФ (похищение человека, совершенное организованной группой).

В ходе допросов члены экипажа судна пояснили, что к борту «Arctic Sea» в шведских территориальных водах подошла скоростная надувная лодка, в которой находилось 8 человек в черной одежде с надписью на спине «POLICIA». Они поднялись на борт судна и, угрожая оружием, потребовали от экипажа беспрекословного выполнения всех их распоряжений.

В результате предпринятых усилий моряками ВМФ России экипаж судна был освобожден, 8 неизвестных лиц, захвативших судно, задержаны.

В настоящее время 11 членов экипажа судна и лица, подозреваемые в его похищении, доставлены в Москву и с ними проводятся следственные действия.

Судно «Arctic Sea», с 4 членами экипажа в данный момент находится на дрейфе в 200 морских милях от островной линии Кабо-Верде.

Расследование уголовного дела продолжается.
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