Operation Dawn 9: Gulf of Aden

The Operations Dawn 9: Gulf of Aden (Operasi Fajar 9) was a naval operation carried out by the Royal Malaysian Navy against Somali pirates in the Arabian Sea on January 20, 2011. In the response, the Malaysian Shipborne Protection Team sent an attack helicopter and 14 naval counter-terrorism group PASKAL in the two RHIB boats to retake the vessel and rescue the crew. After one night trailing the tanker, the Malaysian forces successfully retook the ship by force on January 20, 2011, resulting in the wounding of three pirates, capture of four out of eighteen pirates and all 23 vessel crewmembers rescued.

Key Malaysian rescue personnel

 * Commander Nazri Bin Sharif MISC-RMN
 * The Commander of the Bunga Mas Lima auxiliary ship.


 * Lieutenant Commander Mohd Maznan Bin Mohd Said RMN
 * The Operation Commander of Operation Dawn 9 from KD Sri Semporna. Maznan planned and commanded the PASKAL Operation Dawn to successfully rescue the Bunga Laurel hostages at Gulf of Aden.


 * Naval Lieutenant Noor Asri Bin Roslan RMN
 * The one of PASKAL lieutenant and second-in-command as well as one of the two assault squad leaders stormed the Bunga Laurel at Gulf of Aden.


 * Naval Lieutenant Jason s/o Solomon John RMN
 * The leader of 502 Squadron Naval Air Fleet and pilot of the Fennec attack helicopter during the stormed.

Hijacking
On January 20, 2011, the Panama-owned, Japanese-registered and Malaysian operated chemical tanker MV Bunga Laurel, was carrying lubricating oil and ethylene dichloride worth an estimated RM30 million ($9.8 million) sailing through to Singapore when it was attacked by a group of Somali pirates 300 nmi southeast of the port of Muscat, Oman. The hijacking of MV Bunga Laurel occurred about 300 nmi (coordinate Latitude 20’ 14.73N Longitude 083’ 39.96E) east of Oman at 11:40 pm (MST), two hours after it was separated from a Navy secure escort in the Gulf of Aden. The tanker was boarded by seven of 18 Somali pirates armed with AK-47 rifles and pistols who came using skiff type boats and firing at random. During the attack, 23 Filipino crewmembers on board the vessel activated the Ship Security Alert System before taking cover in a specially designed security compartment near the vessel’s engine room. All lights were turned off and the main engines were shut down.

Received a security emergency
The MISC Emergency Reporting Center (ERC) was alerted by a distress signal at about 11:37 pm from the MV Bunga Laurel. The MISC make a phone call to Bunga Laurel, but no response was obtained from the tanker. At exactly 11.40pm, Bunga Mas Lima called MISC ERC to report that Bunga Laurel had been attacked and pirates were attempting to board the ship by using skiffs. A suspected mothership was also reported in the vicinity. The 14 commando forces in two boats, led by Lieutenant Commander Mohd Maznan Bin Said and Lieutenant Noor Asri Bin Roslan, were sent from the Bunga Mas Lima located as far as 14 nmi at 1:20 am. At the same time, the Fennec attack helicopter which was piloted by Lieutenant Jason Solomon John went airborne to provide reconnaissance and aerial gunfire from its mounted general purpose machine gun. Firefights between the pirates of the Bunga Laurel and snipers from the Bunga Mas Lima and the helicopter occurred. The remaining pirates holding the mothership attempted to move closer to the Bunga Laurel to provide help but was pinned down by the machine gun and sniper shots from the Fennec helicopter.

Engagements
Once the Bunga Mas Lima auxiliary ship approached the MV Bunga Laurel tanker to provide fire support, pirates finally contacted the Bunga Mas Lima ship to surrender. The pirates from the mothership attempted to approach the MV Bunga Laurel tanker to provide assistance, but was thwarted by the sniper team in the Fennec helicopter.

Navy taking action
On January 20, the pirates board the Bunga Laurel about 300 nmi away. Seven pirates emerged from a skiff boat to hijack it. With only eleven pirates remaining behind, a group of commando forces were sent from the Bunga Mas Lima in two rigid-hull speedboats. The Fennec attack helicopter was sent to provide reconnaissance. All seven of the pirates got into a gunfight with the commandos resulting in three of the pirates being injured. The engagement was all over within minutes. No casualties were reported from the rescue team or the Bunga Laurel's crew members. The swift action prevented the MISC from losing the cargo worth an estimated RM30mil, and saved 23 Filipino crew members on board the vessel. The Bunga Mas Lima had just completed the task of escorting the tanker and another MISC liquefied natural gas carrier, MV Seri Balhaf, bound for Fujairah, to a safe zone called Easton 4 in the gulf. All seven captured pirates were Somalis who admitted that they had used one of the previously captured vessels as their mother ship. However, the status of damage to the mothership and injury of the pirates who were on it is uncertain because the attack was carried out at night. After the Malaysian tanker was able to proceed safely, the crew of the Bunga Mas Lima recovered the remnants of the hijacker's weapons. A few AK-47 rifles including one modified AKM rifle and ammunition magazines were retrieved, along with Soviet-made Tokarev TT-33 semi-automatic pistol and other equipment.

Prime Minister's Comments
After news of the incident reached Malaysia, Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak congratulated the Royal Malaysian Navy on its success in rescuing a Malaysian chemical tanker, saying Malaysia was studying international laws on how to deal with detained pirates. The Prime Minister said:



According Maritime Institute of Malaysia senior fellow Nazery Khalid said the action by the PASKAL proved Malaysia's resolve in safeguarding its maritime interests and its commitment to fighting piracy. An official with the London-based International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said, prior to any operation, the rescue team should first ensure the ship’s crew was safe before boarding the vessel. On January 22, the news of this success began to spread in the newspapers and international news agencies, AFP and Reuters, citing the successful start to spread throughout the world.

Legal proceedings
The Royal Malaysia Police took charge of investigations involving seven Somali pirates who allegedly attacked MT Bunga Laurel in the Gulf of Aden on January 20. Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Bin Omar said, the police were taking statements from the crew members of the vessel as well as the commandos from the navy elite PASKALs. Apparently all pirates, aged 15 to 35, had no identification documents on them. The police chief would also seek the Immigration Department's assistance. The suspects were brought to Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital in Klang for a medical examination after they arrived in Port Klang at 4 am. They were detained at Bukit Jalil Detention Centre after the police had successfully obtained a seven-day remand order. Seven Somali hijackers, including three minors, face a possible death sentence under Malaysian law for attempting to hijack a Malaysian vessel in the Gulf of Aden. They were prosecuted in the Magistrate Court on February 11, 2011, on charges of robbery with discharging their firearms at Malaysian forces with intent to cause death or seriously wounded those on board the MV Bunga Laurel. The offenses committed on board the MT Bunga Laurel on the co-ordinates Latitude 20 '14.73N Longitude 083' 39.96E, 250 nautical miles from the coast of Oman and charged under Section 3 of the Firearms Act (Increased Penalties) 1971 (Act 37) with Section 34 of the Penal Code, carries the mandatory death penalty if convicted. Earlier, Deputy Prosecutor Mohd Abazzafree Bin Mohd Abbas told the court, all the accused did not speak Malay or English but the prosecution called one Somali student from Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM), Yaser Mohamad Ahmad to translate for them. Malaysian prosecutors filed charges that carried the death penalty Friday against seven Somali pirate suspects in an attack on a Malaysian-operated ship, in the first such charge in Southeast Asia, and the second in Asia (after South Korea) against the African sea bandits. In bringing them here after rescuing the vessel and booking them, Malaysia is following in the steps of the US, Germany, South Korea and the Netherlands which have charged foreign pirates who attacked their vessels in international waters. The pirates were identified as Ahmed Othman Jamal (25) Abdil Eid Hasan (20) Koore Mohamed Abdile (18), and Abdi Hakim Mohd Abdi (18) and each were explained the charges in Somali language in front of the Magistrate Siti Shakirah Binti Mohtarudin. The names of three 15-year-old juveniles were not announced. All seven are accused of using firearms against the Malaysian forces - a charge which carries the death sentence. But prosecutors said three 15-year-old suspects would not face execution because they were too young.