Indian Navy and International Anti-Piracy Ops

[chetak]

Wicharn said his ship made a distress call on November 18 as it was chased by pirates in two speedboats, but the connection was lost midway. The owners, Sirichai Fisheries, had not heard from the crew since then.

Thai company says INS Tabar sank its vessel

So the ship made a distress call on Nov. 18. Since this Wicharn character knows about this that means some of part of the call got thru and the Thais have known about this since Nov.18. Yet they wait for a whole week before making these claims. This story keeps getting better and better.....

You need to know how exactly this distress call was made!
Was it on company frequency???
The radio contact was lost as it is to be expected to be, because the pirates would have cut off the transmission at the very earliest, as part of their well oiled SOP
Why did not the owner or company personnel immediately report the hijack to the Thai authorities?
If not hijack, why did the owner not report loss of radio contact after a distress call.??
Why did not the thai authorities react?
If indeed, it was a distress call as defined in maritime protocol, and on the international marine distress frequency, it would have registered internationally.
Multiple satellites would have picked it up and the position of the distressed vessel would have been triangulated automatically. Other vessels in the vicinity would have been obliged to respond.
Because a distress signal is always monitored separately and automatically and the crew is always immediately alerted on receipt of such a signal, it would not have been missed. Even if the radio was actually in use at the time of a distress call, the distress call would punch through and over ride the call in progress.
All ships at sea are by law required to watch and monitor the distress frequencies.
International Maritime Organization, (IMO) the United Nations agency concerned with international maritime activities would have got into the act.
The position, time and nature of the distress call would have been logged, passing ships and aircraft in the vicinity like overhead international flights would have been advised to keep a lookout.
None of this seemed to have happened as far as one can tell.

The very strong smell of an insurance scam is beginning to rise.

[chetak]

"Hijack in progress" seems to be the loophole that he is seeking to exploit.
This fine point may not be explicitly or adequately covered in law.

since piracy is not under the insurance cover right ?
but is accidental destruction by a naval ship (assuming something like this will be invoked) covered under maritime insurance agreements ?

or is it some other kind of clause ?

"but is accidental destruction by a naval ship (assuming something like this will be invoked) covered under maritime insurance agreements ?"

This is a new one! Not covered anywhere.
But hope springs eternal in the human breast right?

[Rahul M]

I remember a very old incident in the early 90's in which an Indian sailor working on a merchant ship was killed by a stray harpoon missile from a USN boat. compensation was awarded in that case. anyone remembers if it was from insurance co or GOTUS ?

[ramana]

Folks the ship had pirates on it when the INS Tabar sunk it. Case closed. All thsi Thai whines are besides the point. They admit it was under pirate control. The problem is with DDM and not the Thais who want to get the insurance co to pay them. DDM is scared of India getting any prominence and hence the psy-ops.

A US prespective on How to deal with Pirates

Nice paintings.

Why dont some of you adpet with photoshop paint a scene like that from the pictures?

Kuch kaam ke baath karain?

[jamwal]

ermm.. what happened to the captured pirates in blue jumpsuits who were posing for the pictures in The Hindu

[Victor]

since piracy is not under the insurance cover right ?
but is accidental destruction by a naval ship (assuming something like this will be invoked) covered under maritime insurance agreements ?

or is it some other kind of clause ?

Piracy threat off Somalia hikes insurance premiums

Ships generally carry three separate types of insurance. Marine — or hull — insurance covers physical risks, like grounding or damage from heavy seas. War risk insurance covers acts of terrorism, and, increasingly, piracy. A third type of policy, protection and indemnity, covers issues with the crew.

Somali pirates get ransom money, ship owners collect insurance and they are also going to try and shake down the GoI. Nice scam. I'm in the wrong business.

[chetak]

It is the first headline on my channel ... I just read it out !

Also ... sorry for the indiscipline ... but this piece of pirate breaking news would have been lost in the naval threat.

Wouln't it have been nice if they had `test' fired a Klub?

Vishnu Som
Associate Editor
NDTV

Is it possible to take small boats with Cruise missiles? Anti-tank missiles if fitted onto patrol boats or ships will be better, they can be fired at anything within range. cost effective. Not possible in this scenario, since very far from home. Also the ship may be at a distance, hence not able to fire with the the guns. Hence the right method seems sending the Helicopter with commandos onboard to deal with the pirates. They must have fired warning shots and the pirates retreated back to base. Ship saved.

Some IN ships carry a Strella type of man portable, shoulder launched missile.
You could easily reconfigure some these as a economical defence against pirate ships.
Gives you a decent stand off range too.

Cruise missiles or any other large missile under the circumstances is like using a hammer against a fly.
Not to mention the cost factor.

[prashanth]

Why doesn't IN put a name on the mother ship? The ship looks like Burum Ocean. This was on the wanted list right?

[niran]

Ekawat Nawa 2 the name of supposedly sunk ships is not in the shipping registry.

Sirichai fisheries shows 2 ships as Ekawat Pattana and 2. The pictures
do not match with the released burning ship.

have a look see here

Background:
This is a company with about 6 to 7 siblings(from different wives) as owners.

they have fishing fleet to fish, they have factory to produce "Canned Tuna in Tomato Sauce"
they have anchovy sauce producing factories. Icing on the cake, they act as local insurance
agent, of Loyd.

This company in the past have had their ships confisticated by IN for illegal fishing.
to answer the obvious, Sirichai fiseries along with 3 other companies have fished all the Tunas
in Gulf of Thailand. Hence the need for illegal fishing in far away places.
The local take is:
Insurance will not pay you, when your ship is involved in illegal activities, be it fishing or piracy.
Sirichai fisheries hired illegal Burmies(as is the norm here)crew, and this ship was hijacked
by Somali Pirates, upon discovery that the crews are illegal, and therefore no ransom,
they were dispatched.(where, is anyone guess) and the ship used as Pirate ship.
rest should be very obvious to the Jirga here.

[chetak]

regarding high pressure hoses...if they are effective, how come the ship crew is not using them...going by the news reports, pirates are capturing the ships with relative ease...either they are not used or pirates are boarding the ships without the knowledge of the crew or pirates have far more powerful weapons at their disposal...

few months back there were reports of cruise ships using high powered sound "guns" to chase away the pirates.

BTW, 4 marine cos on chetak drove away two sets of pirates...this is awesome!!!

High pressure hoses need to be physically manned.
Sailors operating them will most of the time be exposed to gunfire
Since the pirates attack from multiple directions just to counter a defence like this, this method does not always work.
Also its not easy to always bring the high pressure hoses to continuously bear on the pirates as they are moving about with agility and speed. Loaded merchantmen maneuver like wallowing sows.

If the pirates actually board a vessel after some of their mates have been injured or killed by the high pressure hoses, they may well execute some of the crew.

Its a lose lose situation

[sohamn]

i think rather than a klub may be a torpedo can be used. They would be very effective against speed boats. By the way the captain and the crew should be awarded medals so that next time they see a pirate ship they should not mistake it for a fishing vessel and leave it. It is the thai boats problem that they could not communicate when is was hijacked. Boats should send a distress signal.

[ramana]

Good job Ajay. Looks like the most probable scenario. The owners were doing something illegal.

[chetak]

Ekawat Nawa 2 the name of supposedly sunk ships is not in the shipping registry.

Sirichai fisheries shows 2 ships as Ekawat Pattana and 2. The pictures
do not match with the released burning ship.

have a look see here

Background:
This is a company with about 6 to 7 siblings(from different wives) as owners.

they have fishing fleet to fish, they have factory to produce "Canned Tuna in Tomato Sauce"
they have anchovy sauce producing factories. Icing on the cake, they act as local insurance
agent, of Loyd.

This company in the past have had their ships confisticated by IN for illegal fishing.
to answer the obvious, Sirichai fiseries along with 3 other companies have fished all the Tunas
in Gulf of Thailand. Hence the need for illegal fishing in far away places.
The local take is:
Insurance will not pay you, when your ship is involved in illegal activities, be it fishing or piracy.
Sirichai fisheries hired illegal Burmies(as is the norm here)crew, and this ship was hijacked
by Somali Pirates, upon discovery that the crews are illegal, and therefore no ransom,
they were dispatched.(where, is anyone guess) and the ship used as Pirate ship.
rest should be very obvious to the Jirga here.

Ajay Pratap ji
Reports were mentioning Ekawat Nawa 5

[chetak]

i think rather than a klub may be a torpedo can be used. They would be very effective against speed boats. By the way the captain and the crew should be awarded medals so that next time they see a pirate ship they should not mistake it for a fishing vessel and leave it. It is the thai boats problem that they could not communicate when is was hijacked. Boats should send a distress signal.

TORPEDOES?
wow!

[Singha]

a torpedo to take out a 20 ft motorboat

[niran]

Ah! mightily sorry. it is Ekawat Nawa 5. last nite could not sleep, with all the excitement
of shuttering down an Airport who can.

[ASPuar]

Its a sad time when our media believes some two bit Thai fishing company which is trying to cash in on a lost case by getting the govt to pay for their lost ship, over our own Navy. I wouldnt be surprised if the same lobbies which are trying to get as much negative press in the media about the armed forces as possible are responsible for this as well.

The fact is: If the vessel is under pirate control, it is a pirate vessel. We dont give a damn whose it was before, but now it is armed, laden with pirates, carrying explosives, and on a ram course with an Indian Navy frigate. The only way it will be dealt with, is with destruction. Case closed.

I am amazed at the number of stories against the military in the news these days, entirely at the cost of national interest.

[Nayak]

Exactly, timing has been perfect for this leak. Smells like a scam and the DDM will sensationalize it to tarnish the image of IN. I can imagine the multiple orga$m$ the anchor on Aaj Tak/India Today will be reaching when he/she screams out in chaste Hindi how IN 'mucked' up.

[Singha]

Ajay how is the street level feel there? I hope you are staying someplace safe.

[chetak]

Ah! mightily sorry. it is Ekawat Nawa 5. last nite could not sleep, with all the excitement
of shuttering down an Airport who can.

Much appreciate the good effort that went into the research though!

Looks like they are trying to shake down the IN

[Nandi]

Fox news claims US official questions INS evidence

[Dileep]

Did the ship fly a flag? I don't think the pirates would tear down the flag of a hijacked vessel. Absense of a flag is reason enough for any navy to board a vessel, and consider it hostile if the request is denied.

Obviously, the ship was doing some other kind of "fishing in troubled waters" and te owners are trying to get some out of it. Like an owner would misteriously appear if you hit a stray dog with your car.

[Singha]

per stolt valor crewmen the pirates never did talk. instead shots were used as signals. one shot mean a boat had arrived, two meant departed and 15 people firing in air meant 'keep quiet'

the strong silent types it seems.

[asbchakri]

Well the trawler had fishing equipment in it. Don't you know anything about fishing? You need RDX, Dynamite etc - to blow the fish out of water.

Yeah so that they come out all Fried, Cooked Ready to eat

Serouisly this is all B*** S*** for Insurance money i suppose. But i hope it does not force IN to stop the deployment of ships to the Somalia waters.

[neerajb]

Top 10 Anti-Piracy Weapons For Future Use In Somalia

http://gcaptain.com/maritime/blog/anti- ... y-somalia/

Cheers....

[tsarkar]

Legally IN is on very safe grounds.

The pirates were at the helm and Thai government sovereignty had ceased. It had threatened seafarers in open seas and was legitimately engaged.

Precedence exists. In naval engagements in the 17th and 18th centuries, if a British man o’ war was boarded by the opposing French or Dutch, then other British men o’ war would fire & engage it as an enemy combatant, irrespective if the flag was struck or not.

During Operation Noble Eagle, NORAD was authorized to shoot down hijacked airliners with passengers on board if they’re threatening mass destruction.

If your car is hijacked by armed men threatening the public at large, the police will use lethal force despite possible damage to your car.

BTW those wondering why USN & NATO avoid active action – this is precisely the reason. Imagine the furor if big bully sank a third world trawler.

[Nayak]

Indian navy sank Thai trawler, not pirate ship, owner says
By Mark McDonald

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/11/26/ ... PIRATE.php

HONG KONG: The ship that was blasted out of the water by the Indian navy in the Gulf of Aden last week was not a pirate vessel but a Thai fishing trawler that had been seized by pirates earlier the day, the boat's owner said Wednesday.

The trawler, the Ekawat Nava 5, with a crew of 16, was hijacked on the morning of Nov. 18, according to Wicharn Sirichaiekawat, the managing director of Sirichai Fisheries, which owns the boat.

The boat had a tracking device on board, Wicharn said in a phone interview from Bangkok, and the company immediately reported the hijacking and the boat's location to the International Maritime Bureau in Kuala Lumpur, Malayasia, the clearinghouse for reports of piracy.

The bureau broadcast the news of the hijacking to various ports, other ships in the area and the coalition of navies that helps maintain a maritime security corridor in the gulf.

"We got the report and sent out the information," said Noel Choong, head of the piracy reporting center. "The Thai company did the correct thing."

A British Navy ship then approached the Ekawat Nava 5, but the pirates "brought out our crew and used them as human shields," Wicharn said.

The warship backed away, he said.which warship was this ? Why was this not reported ?

"They said they couldn't do anything because they feared for the safety of the crew."

About 7 p.m., with darkness closing in, the Indian warship Tabar, which had been escorting Indian merchant ships in the gulf, approached the Ekawat Nava 5. The Tabar demanded that she stop to be investigated.

"This vessel was similar in description to the 'mother vessel' mentioned in various piracy bulletins," the Indian Navy said in a statement.

"Mother ships" are oceangoing boats, often large fishing trawlers, that tow or carry speedboats. These faster and more nimble boats are then deployed to overtake, attack and hijack commercial vessels, which are then held for ransom.

The pirates said they would blow up the Tabar if it approached any closer, and the navy statement said pirates with rocket-propelled grenade launchers were seen on deck.

Then, the navy said, the Tabar was fired upon.

The Indian ship returned fire, resulting in explosions on board the fishing boat. Two speedboats then broke away from the burning trawler, the navy said, as the pirates tried to escape.

One of the speedboats was later found abandoned, and the other escaped entirely.

Of the 16-man fishing crew, only one has been found - a Cambodian seaman who was picked up by Yemeni fishermen. The man, holding onto a metal barrel, had drifted for five days and 100 miles. He is recuperating in Yemen "and still very frightened," Wicharn said.

"We're still looking for the rest of the crew," said Wicharn, who added that the crew members' lives were insured but he carried no insurance on the vessel itself. He put the value of the boat at $500,000.

"The survivor saw some of the crew jump into the sea, although six or seven had been shot dead from the very beginning."

Wicharn said his crewmen, according to the survivor, had been shot by the Indian boat, not the pirates. The fishing captain apparently had been shot in the legs.

The Thai company has asked Yemeni officials to spread the word to harbormasters and fishing captains to be on the lookout for "bodies or surviving crew."

"We're looking for some king of responsibility now from India, something," he said, adding that foreign ministry officials and diplomats from both countries were talking about the incident.

"The Indians claim we were a pirate ship," Wicharn said. "They say they have pictures, and we've asked them to show them. Maybe there's some misunderstanding."

Choong, of the piracy reporting center, said the issue had become "very sensitive because the governments are involved, and it involves warships and crew safety."

"'I can understand both sides, and why the Indians fired," he said. "When they look at a boat with pirates on board and heavily armed, they think it's a mother ship and they want to stop it."
Terms of Use

His story is full of holes.

[niran]

Legally IN is on very safe grounds.

The pirates were at the helm and Thai government sovereignty had ceased.

The supposed owners of the trawler are Thai Nationals.

All their ships are registered in some island country.(this is what I could make out)

The trawler was in International waters

The crew refused to comply for " Boarding & Search" by a legitimate Naval Vessel.

The crew discharged military weapon towards the Naval Vessel.
(this raises the question Where from & why they had military weapon on board)

Make up of the crew is unknown( HR director could find the list )

The real name of the trawler is still a controversy.

The excuse "Delivering Fishing Equipment" hold no water, as Sirichai Fisheries co.ltd. do
not have any Permit to export fishing equipment.

This makes IN actions Legally and Morally correct.

PS There is nothing in the local media here. all is about "Revolution" and "Recession" induced layoffs.

[Lalmohan]

hows this for a conspiracy theory - it was a PLAN ELINT boat, INS Tabar had orders to take it out, all else is psyops...

anyway - the story has many holes, doesn't add up very well from the innocent trawler perspective - well done IN

[Singha]

but he carried no insurance on the vessel itself

is that legal for a ship plying international waters and putting in at
foreign ports to deliver eqpt?

[krishnan]

Its confirmed now that indeed it was a thai trawler .
confirmed by International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center

[sohamn]

Our media is getting too paranoid about this incident. I remmeber when a USN ships shot down the Iranian plan the captain and the crew were awarded medals. Here IN shot the vessel after the vessel shot back at IN. Its perfectly fine, may be there was some collateral damage - but this should deter other countries like Thailand , China etc to send fishing trawlers to Somalia. Media should behave responsibly and instead appreciate the work of IN to thward the pirates in that region.

By the way, I got the torpedo idea from the movie The In-Laws . There Micheal Douglas who was riding a speed boat was chased by a torpedo. So my great idea is - Let a IN submarine lead a destroyer or frigade, while the ship stays a little distance and questions the Mother******* ship on Radio, the sub can creep up close to investigate, it can use periscopes to take photos, or even use the sonars to listen to what the pirates speak. If they can confirm that the ship is hostile then blow it out of the water with a Torpedo. Another advantage is that there will be no evidence left to question IN later

[chetak]

Great!
Check this out.

http://www.dawn.com/2008/11/26/top16.htm


Pakistan offers UN help to combat high sea piracy



By Our Correspondent


UNITED NATIONS, Nov 25: Pakistan on Monday offered to help the international community combat the menace of piracy off the coast of Somalia and the Red sea.

The offer to supplement United Nations’ efforts to combat piracy was made at a meeting between Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UN Adbullah Hussain Haroon and Belgian Minister of Defence Pieter De Crem and heads of UN peace-keeping operations.

They were discussing issues relating to the peacekeeping troops presently being deployed by the United Nations world over under the UN Security Council mandate.

Mr Haroon offered the help of Pakistan Navy to quell piracy provided a clear mandate was given by the UN Security Council, according to a press statement issued by the Pakistan mission.

He, however, made it clear that without UN-permitted involvement of the Pakistan Air Force to fly air support missions in the region from bases in the Arabian peninsula as well as financial arrangements, provision of technology, weaponry to its troops, who would serve under their own Senior Naval Commanders, Pakistan would not consider taking a lead role in the Somalian expedition.

[Nayak]

Please keep chaapay-maar's useless PLAN and wetdreaming-Pukistani navy out of this thread.

[harbans]

There may be tragedy involved in this incident, even though the IN seems confident.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/ar ... iEiZ0iBt1Q

http://www.itexaminer.com/indian-navy-d ... awler.aspx

Seems the hostage crew were tied up by the hijackers when Tabar fired. Another thing, there seems to have been a standoff several hours between Tabar and the vessel into late night. So when the standoff started it must have been light/ dusk. Tabar would have known the vessel name/ registration.

Looks we're going to hear a bit more about this issue in the days to come. And all may not be good to hear.

[vishwakarmaa]

A job well done by Indian Navy. Kudos to them.

Don't worry about what Western media says. Racism and prejudice are their born traits.

In the time to come, when Asian Navy become stronger and spread their footprint around the world, we will hear more whines and noises. Days are over when they kept us tied to Pakistan(a British creation) and Kashmir(american creation).

[vishwakarmaa]

Many people on other end of the world are not happy that Indian Navy has actually spread its influence outside 'South Asia'. Thats understandable.

[harbans]

Indian Navy sink Somali pirate ship
AsiaNews.it, Italy - Nov 19, 2008

Today a Thai fishing trawler was hijacked along with its crew of 16 people, in the Gulf of Aden. So far this year, there have been 95 pirate attacks in ...

Somali pirate hijacks Thai trawler
Bangkok Post, Thailand - Nov 19, 2008

Choong said that in the latest incident, a Thai-operated fishing boat registered in Kiribati was seized off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden on Tuesday while en route to the Middle East.


"Two speed boats with five to six Somali pirates each came alongside the fishing boat and thereafter hijacked her," he added.


Choong said communications were cut while the ship was reporting the incident. The condition of the 16 crew on board the vessel is unknown.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_new ... ?id=132138

There's a Cambodian crew member who made it alive by clinging to an oil drum or something for 5 days. In a Yemen hospital now.

This hijacking was in the same area that Tabar was operating..

[Gerard]

Choong said that photographs of the Thai vessel had been sent out to the coalition naval forces and other agencies when it was hijacked as "the fishing boat was actually an ideal mother vessel for the pirates."

And if the vessel is in pirate hands, it is a mother vessel.

[Philip]

"Was the so-called Thai trawler actually gun-running for the pirate fleet?"
Read about Thailand's "dirty" secrets,other than its sex industry.

The "game is afoot" ,as Holmes would say! Jealous of the IN's instant popularity and kudos received from various maritime organisations and countries worldwide,especially those affected by piracy,and stung by the criticism levelled against the huge impotent 150 ship western armada,headed by the USN for doing nothing to stem the pirate pandemic in the Arabian Sea,the first salvo to try and denigrate India and the IN are being fired by certain vested powers using their Thai allies.Let's take a close look at Thailand,a country well known for harbouring wanted criminals of the worst kind and letting them go when "caught" for a sum!

The attempt being made now is that the IN sank a poor trawler full of innocent Thai fishermen by mistake.These lies are deliberately being spread by certain vested powers using their Thai lackeys to denigrate the IN.As R.Adm.Raja Menon wrote,the glorious 150 ship western armada under the US's Africa Command supposedly "controls" these parts of entire Indian Ocean region,but has no place for the dominant navy and nation of the region India in it! Why the f**k then do we exercise with it? As the good admiral has said,that if India and Pak could both work together successfully in UN peacekeeping in Africa under the UN flag without any problems, perhaps the time has come for India,Pakistan,Sri Lanka,etc., and the Subcontinental nations to develop their own security architecture and maritime force,when all we have to protect us is the farce of the western armada who value "pirate human rights" above the victims rights and the impotence of the UN.

1.First,the IN has refuted the allegations splendidly,point by point.INS Tabar was threatened and attacked when warned and in self defence the mother ship was sunk.Does the USN now allow any vessel to challenge it and fire upon it in similar fashion after the experience of the USS Cole which was almost sunk in Yemen? The USN is after the Cole fiasco building dozens of so-called "littoral warfare" frigates to counter just such threats.The vessel sunk was seen with armed men aboard on deck,who had RPGs and MGs who fired at the Tabar.

2.The most illuminating fact pointed out by the IN are the pictures of the huge explosion that followed the Tabar's counterfire.Unless there was large quantities of explosives and ammo aboard,this could not have happened.Have you ever heard of a trawler's "exploding fish"? Some fishy trawler indeed! OK,let's assume that it was inded a Thai fishing trawler,but innocent,no.From the evidence it was most likely that the trawler had been itself a victim of piracy and had been commandeered by the pirates.As the IN spokeman said,have you ever heard of shipbuilders building vessels especially for pirates?!

I however have a theory about this as my post's title suggests. I am going to illustrate below the Nelsonian eye that the corrupt Thai establishment turns toward international crime and terrorists (their own ex-PM ,Thak-"sin",ex-English Premier league football club owner,was just dumped out of Britain),the Thais have for decades been silent partners in international gun running ,allowing all kinds and manner of deadly species to use Thailand as a safe haven for their nefarious purposes.
Was the Thai trawler actually gun-running for the pirate fleet? It could very well have been filled with weapons and ammo meant for the pirate fleet,who were about to transport the guns and ammo quietly at sea,as the port of Eyl is now under intense surveillance and scrutiny by satellites,etc.of the world's major powers and navies.The same technique has been used for decades by the LTTE,whose merchantmen incidentally were using Thai ports to load their arms purchased from S-East Asia in transporting and offloading their arms and material to the LTTE's Sea Tiger smaller baots off the Sri Lankan coast.Here is the clincher.As the foll. report indicates,the LTTE's chief global arms procurer "K.P.",was "caught" in Thailand,arrested and then suddenly disappeared after paying the corrupt Thai military and establishment their fee just as the pirates demand ransom money from the shipowners to free the vessel and their crews!
Therefore,the "innocent fishing trawler' is a fishy story and the most one can say in defence of the unscrupulous Thais is that this is an attempt at an insurance scam after the gun-runner was caught and destroyed!

How Thailand protects and harbours international terrorists.
Excerpts:

http://www.spur.asn.au/ThaiCurrentNews.htm

Who is KP - Shanmugam Kumaran Tharmalingham aka Kumaran Pathmanathan (49) (KP) He is a key LTTE leader in charge of weapons smuggling and believed to live in Thailand and Cambodia. He is one of Interpol most wanted terrorists. Wanted for participation in terrorism and the murder of Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. But No more. KP the man behind of an International Weapons net work of the LTTE has been arrested few hours ago by Interpol official in Bangkok on Today Evening. According to Lanka Guardian sources in Bangkok, ‘Sri Lankan authorities may decide to extradite him. They will want to interrogate him. Meanwhile a top level LTTE member who is an Intelligence officer in the LTTE has been identified this situation as a big heart attack in the LTTE and their net work. ‘Pathmanadan, who also had a number of aliases, has recently been the subject of a manhunt that stretched to Johannesburg, Rangoon, Singapore and Bangkok. Police said they believed he had bank accounts in London, Frankfurt Denmark, Athens and Australia and has over 200 passports for his use. KP is one of the best friends of Prabakaran the LTTE supremo also his wife Madiwadini. According to Tamil Political Sources, “Madhivadhani was accompanied by Kumaran, the head of the LTTE's international committee, who handled the procurement of arms for the LTTE. K Pathmanababha, alias KP, alias T S Kumaran, a Prabakaran confidant, headed the shadowy international financial wing of the LTTE. The reclusive KP, is the head of the international arms procurement for the LTTE (Full report in The Guardian).


LTTE and Phuket - The LTTE has been present in Phuket since the late 80’s. In 1990, port authorities at Penang impounded the Sunbird, a LTTE commercial vessel, and seized diving and communication equipment and some ammunition. The Sunbird has called regularly in Phuket. When a LTTE base in Myanmar was closed in 1996 after protests from Colombo, the Thailand Andemans seaports became still more important. According to SLA Brigadier Sunil Tennakoon[5] the LTTE has been active in Phuket and costal waters along the Indian Ocean since 1996. In December 1993 merchant vessel Yahata left Phuket with a large consignment of weapons destined for Sri Lanka. Krishnakumar “Kittu” Sathasivam, a close associate of LTTE supremo Vellupillai Prabhakaran, led the operation and when the Indian Navy intercepted the ship, Kittu blew it up and drowning along with several of his crew members. Lloyds list reported on March 26 2000 that the Tamil Tigers were operating a base on a island near Phuket and set up a shipping base in Thailand to smuggle arms and drugs after being forced out of Burma (Full report in http://www.svik.org/thai.htm).

Excerpt:International Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies

http://www.ipcs.org/nmt_militaryIndex2. ... icle&mod=b

The sea is the main route for illegal arms coming from various countries. The land borders also provide alternative routes. The LTTE gun trade route passes through the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea. Arms originating from Cambodia are loaded onto small fishing trawlers in the the southern Thai port of Ranong. These vessels then transfer the consignment to larger vessels for for onward passage to Sri Lanka. Small boats to Cox Bazar transport a part of the consignment. Several vessels engaged in gun running have been captured in the region. In 1996, the Bangladesh authorities seized 600 rifles from a fishing trawler originating in Thailand. In 1997, the Royal Thai Navy seized an arms shipment for the People?s Liberation Army (Manipur) following a chase in the Andaman Sea off the port of Ranong.

http://www.spur.asn.au/ThaiNews_1.htm

`Tigers set up base in Thai island'

BANGKOK, JUNE 3: Sri Lanka's Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have made Thailand a hub of their southeast Asian gun-running and fund-raising activities, sources close to Thai military intelligence said.

The source told AFP the LTTE had been operating a sizeable base on a Thai island 15 kilometers from the southwest coast tourist resort of Phuket.

Following Thai newspaper reports relating to the existence of the base in mid-May, Thai police engaged in a cover-up to prevent details of the Tigers' presence being revealed, the source said.

Thai government officials have denied the existence of the base, although Army Chief General Surayud Chulanont has told reporters the military has known of Tiger operations in southern Thailand for some time.

The Bangkok Post reported that an Army intelligence unit had photographed Tamil rebels transferring weapons to the island on May 25.

In response to the Post report, Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai told reporters that the Phuket area "may be the smuggling route ... But there is no Tamil base in Thailand."

Phuket Governor Charnchai Sunthornmat had previously dismissed reports of the Tigers' presence near Phuket as being the "suspicions of a foreign news agency".

Sources told AFP the alleged base near Phuket was just the tip of the Tiger iceberg in Thailand, with the LTTE funding activities and arms smuggling also taking place in Bangkok and in waters just off the Thai coast.

Earlier this year, shipping news publication Lloyd's List reported the Tigers had shifted southeast Asia operations from Myanmar to Thailand after diplomatic pressure on the Yangon junta in 1996 had enforced the move.

The Nation daily reported today that Thai police suspected a shipyard near Phuket of producing speedboats for the Tigers.

Daily News : 5 June 2000
Tigers raising funds in Phuket

The Straits Times of Singapore, in a Bangkok datelined report in its June 02 edition, says that LTTE supporters are believed to have set up front companies in Phuket into raise funds with the intention of buying arms to support their war efforts at home.

The report, under portfolio of South East Asia and quoting a Bangkok-based analyst, said that Sri Lankan Tamil businessmen have over the past year, set up fisheries, finance and shipping companies on a the Southern Thai island as a cover for their activities.

The Strait Times report which has been filed by its Thailand correspondent Edward Tang, said:" supporters of the Sri Lankan Tamil rebels are believed to have set up front companies in Phuket into raise funds with the intention of buying arms to support their war efforts at home, sources have said.

According to a Bangkok-based analyst, Sri Lankan Tamil businessmen have over the past year, set up fisheries, finance and shipping companies in the Southern Thai island as a cover for their activities.

The businessmen are sympathizers of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) which has been waging a war of
independence against the Sri Lankan authorities.

A Phuket based journalist said some of the companies even owned merchant ships which allegedly transported weapons purchased from the regions to rebel-held areas, such as Mullaitivu, a coastal city of Sri Lanka.

It is the shortest route from Thailand. The distance between Phuket and Mullaitivu is about 2200 kilometres, he said.

The Thai Government said it was aware of the rebel presence in Phuket and was monitoring their activities closely.

Army Commander Satrayad Chulanoni was reported by the Bangkok Post this week as having said that the rebels have moved their operations from Myanmar to Phuket.

He denied allegations of the Thai military's involvements in the arms shipments to the LTTE.

The Army wants to reiterate that we have not supported and don't want to see the illegal trade of war weapons in our country.

In January, Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar had alleged that the Tamil rebels were using Phuket and coastal areas along the Andaman sea bases to funnel weapons and ammunition home.

The Thai Government had rejected the claims then, but had since acknowledged that smugglers operating off the course could have resulted in arms being shipped to the rebels.

However, it added that the smugglers could be foreigners abetted by Thais who might not be aware of their involvement in the arms insurgency in Sri Lanka.

It also maintain that Phuket was not the LTTE's operating base, although it could have been used as a transit point.

The Thai and the Sri Lankan authorities, are reporting to be sharing intelligence and cooperating on other fronts to prevent other weapons from reaching the Tamil guerillas.

Aside from the small arms, the LTTE is believed to be shopping for fuel and anti-aircraft missiles.

Lloyd's List, a London based shipping publication, reported recently that the LTTE has bought weapons from North Korea, Myanmar, Cambodia and as well as from arms dealers in Europe and the Middle East.

The rebels ships had also carried consignments of heroin to be sold to other countries to help fund their activities, he said.

According to the Lloyds List, the LTTE owns its ships which were deployed for arms smuggling as well as commercial freight operations, the report added.