KENYA: WFP say continued Somali pirate attacks on aid ships could see "millions" going hungry

Record ID: 360817

  • Title: KENYA: WFP say continued Somali pirate attacks on aid ships could see "millions" going hungry
  • Date: 18th April 2009
  • Summary: NAIROBI, KENYA ( APRIL 17, 2009) (REUTERS) WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME (WFP) SPOKESMAN PETER SMERDON WALKING SMERDON TALKING TO JOURNALIST (SOUNDBITE) (English) WFP SENIOR PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICER, PETER SMERDON, SAYING "Well, the big problem now is that we have seen three pirate attacks on ships carrying WFP food or going to collect WFP food within a week. So the problem is two
  • Embargoed: 3rd May 2009 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Kenya
  • Country: Kenya
  • Topics: International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVA6JSW4Y9C3DU7C2CDVIA8H12E1
  • Story Text: Millions could go hungry if escalating attacks by pirates off Somalia continue to make it harder for the U.N. food agency to deliver relief aid to east Africa and the Horn of Africa, the World Food Program (WFP) said on Friday (April 17).
    Attacks like that on the Maersk Alabama last week and two others after that are delaying the delivery of much needed food aid and also raising insurance costs and making shippers wary of going there, said Peter Smerdon, WFP's senior public affairs officer for the region.

    "The big problem now is that we have seen three pirate attacks on ships carrying WFP food or going to collect WFP food within a week. So the problem is two of these ships were heading for Mombasa and Mombasa is a gateway to the entire region, both for Somalia but also for Southern Sudan, Kenya, Uganda and Eastern D.R Congo. So if ships are going to be hit as they head to Mombasa we could see in the coming months millions of people going hungry if that food assistance is delayed for extended periods because it has been taken by pirates," said Smerdon.
    In the latest attempt on a cargo ship carrying aid, a U.S.-flagged cargo ship Liberty was attacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia but failed to board the craft after the U.S. navy came to the ship's rescue.
    Smerdon said there are not enough navy vessels at sea to protect all ships passing through the busy routes and suggests the formation of a protected corridor to prevent attacks.

    "The difficulty is that there is a very limited number of warships in the region and they cant escort every ship passing through the gulf of Aden and off Somalia simply because its a huge shipping route and thousands of ships go through every year, so something else needs to be worked out. there is an idea for some sort of corridor where protection will be nearby in the form of warships and aircrafts and perhaps the ship can go down that corridor at set times so at least there is some help nearby and the pirates hopefully will stay away. The interesting thing that the pirates have done recently is that they are hitting further and further afield though they are trying obviously to avoid the naval forces and they have been pretty effective in doing that," said Smerdon.
    Smerdon said it now costs hundred of millions of dollars more to feed the same number of people a year earlier because of the problems associated with shipping food.
    Heavily armed pirates from lawless Somalia have been increasingly striking the busy Indian Ocean shipping lanes and strategic Gulf of Aden, capturing dozens of vessels, hundreds of hostages and making off with millions of dollars in ransoms. Recent attacks have shown no signs that the pirates are slowing down their operations despite recent French and U.S. navy presence.
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