Cargo Ship Hostages Rescued by US Navy SEALS - Grand Central Times - Dateline March 9th 2020

[Capt Hart]

Cargo Ship Hostages Rescued by US Navy SEALs

The Grand Central Times - Dateline March 9th 2020

 

 

Image of the hostage rescue released by the Pentagon

 

Families of the MV Europa Flame's crew, who had been held hostage for over 48 hours aboard the vessel since their abduction on Saturday, can finally breathe a sigh of relief. The Pentagon announced early this morning that a hostage rescue operation was successfully conducted by US Navy SEALs, and that all six hostages were recovered with only minor injuries. According to reports, the crew was accosted by a series of fast-moving boats late Saturday afternoon. The boats contained men with automatic weaponry who quickly boarded the vessel and took the crew hostage. It comes as no shock that an absurdly high ransom was subsequently demanded from the parent company of the Europa Flame and what can sometimes become a long standoff began. However, the fast and decisive action of the US Military has put a quick end to what would surely have been a terrifying experience for the crew. There are even rumors that the raid itself was conducted by the infamous Seal Team 6, who were made famous by the operation they conducted to kill Osama Bin-Laden in 2011. Unfortunately however, we could not find any source that could verify this claim.

 

The successful rescue of the MV Europa Flame's crew comes as a great relief, not only to the families of the sailors, but to international experts on piracy in the South China Sea as well. Experts have cautioned on numerous occasions that piracy in the region has been steadily on the rise in recent years. This is especially concerning as the area that has seen the most uptick in activity includes key shipping lanes in and around Singapore, which has about 40% of global trade pass through every year. The raid reasserts the US' commitment to never negotiate with terrorists, in any region but as a reminder for this one, and experts hope it may serve as a deterrent to future pirates in the region. While US' projection of military power abroad has been a point of concern for many, in this instance at least, there is very little that can be argued against if their actions serve to secure such a vast portion of the global economy. I don't want pirates stealing the things I'm ordering on Amazon and I'm sure no one else does either.

 

Alan White - The Grand Central Times
*This news report is a fictional work created to support the 3d MRB ARMA gameplay