One civilian was killed in an exchange of fire between Somali pirates arguing over their shares of a large ransom paid last week for the release of a Greek vessel, residents said on Tuesday.
Mohamed Adan Nur, an elder in the pirate lair of Hobyo, about 480km north of the capital Mogadishu, said tension had been simmering for days and a gunfight erupted late on Monday.
”A passerby died in the incident which is not the first of its kind, they always argue over the illegal money they take from the ships they hijack,” he told Agence France-Presse by phone.
The pirates were arguing over the ransom paid last week to free the MV Ariana, a Greek-owned cargo ship with a crew of 24 Ukrainians that had been captured in the Indian Ocean in May.
According to pirates who spoke to AFP at the time of the release, a total of about $2,5-million in cash was delivered to obtain the freedom of the ship and its crew.
”One of the pirates borrowed money from his colleague and refused to repay him after receiving his share of the Greek ship’s ransom. That was the cause of the exchange of fire,” local pirate Ali Ganey told AFP.
Adan Moalim Bahsir said he and other Hobyo elders were trying to mediate for a peaceful resolution of the conflict.
”One innocent civilian has already died because he was caught up in their feud. If we do not mediate, there could be more bloodshed,” he said.
In a given hijacking case, up to 50 pirates or more can claim a share of the ransom money, which is generally paid in $50 and $100 bills.
The men who seize the vessel get a larger slice of the cake than their colleagues who stayed ashore and, in keeping with the centuries-old code of ”piratehood”, the first man who boarded the ship gets a bonus.
Local businessmen and other individuals can also decide to invest in a hijacking in exchange for a share of the final ransom, by lending the pirates money and weapons, buying food or supplying the narcotic khat leaf. — AFP
