American Cargo Ship Reported Seized Off Venezuelan Coast - ADA News - September 19th, 2024

[Capt Boyle]

American Cargo Ship Reported Seized Off Venezuelan Coast

 

An American cargo ship, the Illinois Express, is reported to have been hijacked on its way to Aruba, 20 miles from Venezuela. The incident is reported to have occurred approximately 50 miles off the Venezuelan coast at 5:23 pm local time. The vessel’s crew reported that a pair of small boats were following them and that they had received hails from someone claiming to be “local authorities” demanding that they halt their vessel. An additional report from the ship stated that the small ships had fired warning shots and were attempting to board. No further communications were reported from the ship, though maritime tracking sites were able to ping the ship’s position traveling South towards Venezuela before its transponder was turned off. The Venezuelan government denied involvement in the reported hijacking, with a government spokesman claiming “the only pirates in the region are the US Navy”. The White House released a statement saying that they were monitoring the situation and were in contact with the ship’s owners and were attempting to establish a dialogue with the Venezuelan government. 

 

Archival photo of the Illinois Express (right) in Puerto Rico

 

Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is in the grips of widespread unrest after a crackdown two weeks ago led to dozens of fatalities in Caracas, with many more reported, but unconfirmed, in other cities. Several opposition groups have declared the Maduro regime illegitimate in the face of the renewed violence and are calling for new elections. Attempts by the Organization of American States to negotiate between the two sides were flatly dismissed by the Venezuelan government as “unwarranted for an internal matter of national security”. While the United States and the European Union have issued statements of support for the opposition groups, the Russian Federation stated that “they would not tolerate another imperialist land grab by the United States and its puppets” as they announced their support of the Maduro regime. 
 

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