Free: Captain Richard Phillips, hero; Update: “They were pointing the AK-47s at the captain.”
Flying the flag high today:
Good news on this Easter Sunday. Captain Richard Phillips is free.
Reports say Captain Phillips jumped overboard again, and the US Navy moved in — killing three of the pirates and taking one into custody.
***
The headlines are not quite right.
They should read: “Daring Captain takes command again, second escape attempt successful; Navy captures three.”
More:
A spokeswoman for the Phillips family, Alison McColl, said Phillips and his wife, Andrea, spoke by phone shortly after he was freed.
“I think you can all imagine their joy and what a happy moment that was for them,” McColl said outside of the Phillips home in Underhill. “They’re all just so happy and relieved. Andrea wanted me to tell the nation that all of your prayers and good wishes have paid off because Capt. Phillips is safe.”
When Phillips’ crew heard the news aboard their ship in the port of Mombasa, they placed an American flag over the rail of the top of the Maersk Alabama and whistled and pumped their fists in the air. Crew fired a bright red flare into the sky from the ship.
“We made it!” said crewman ATM Reza, pumping his fist in the air.
“He managed to be in a 120-degree oven for days, it’s amazing,” said another of about a dozen crew members who came out to talk to reporters. He said the crew found out the captain was released because one of the sailors had been talking to his wife on the phone.
Capt. Joseph Murphy, the father of second-in-command Shane Murphy, thanked Phillips for his bravery.
“Our prayers have been answered on this Easter Sunday. I have made it clear throughout this terrible ordeal that my son and our family will forever be indebted to Capt. Phillips for his bravery,” Murphy said. “If not for his incredible personal sacrifice, this kidnapping and act of terror could have turned out much worse.”
In the written statement, Murphy said both his family and Phillips’ “can now celebrate a joyous Easter together.”
Terry Aiken, 66, who lives across the street from the Phillips house, fought back tears as he reacted to the news.
“I’m very, very happy,” Aiken said. “I can’t be happier for him and his family.”
***
Navy Vice Adm. William Gortney:
“They were pointing the AK-47s at the captain,” Vice Adm. William Gortney, head of the U.S. Naval Central Command, said in a Pentagon briefing from Bahrain.
Gortney also said Washington had rejected negotiations with the pirates. “The United States government policy is to not negotiate,” he said.
Would have been nice to hear those words directly from the commander-in-chief.
See what others have said
Note from Michelle: This section is for comments from michellemalkin.com's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that I agree with or endorse any particular comment just because I let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with my terms of use may lose his or her posting privilege.
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.
 |
The trial of the last Haditha Marine: SSgt Wuterich takes plea deal
January 23, 2012 03:25 PM by Michelle Malkin
59 Comments
The last Haditha Marine: Trial update, prosecution collapse, plea deal in the works?
January 19, 2012 05:49 PM by Michelle Malkin
56 Comments
The last Haditha Marine: Wuterich trial update
January 5, 2012 06:19 PM by Michelle Malkin
26 Comments
Remember SSgt Frank D. Wuterich: The last Haditha Marine goes on trial
January 2, 2012 12:24 AM by Michelle Malkin
57 Comments
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”
December 25, 2011 03:26 AM by Michelle Malkin
75 CommentsJoe Biden: The Taliban Per Se is Not Our Enemy
December 19, 2011 04:06 PM by Doug Powers
105 Comments
Remembering Pearl Harbor: 70 years
December 7, 2011 10:10 AM by Michelle Malkin
123 CommentsA message from “Occupy Bagram”
November 20, 2011 07:54 AM by Michelle Malkin
63 CommentsMoonbat of the day: Suffolk Univ. law prof condemns sending care packages to troops, flying American flag
November 14, 2011 08:36 PM by Michelle Malkin
46 Comments
Categories: War
Weekly Standard
» White House Economic Adviser: 'We Need a Global Minimum Tax'Pundit & Pundette
» Bishop Jenky, Nicki Minaj, and the "98%"Sister Toldjah
» Obama’s new budget is a bad jokeJustOneMinute
» We Hear From The Department Of Good Ideas And False Choices
Thank you, Navy…!!!
That’s great news! Prayers have been answered.
Thank God!
How about some patriotic music…
Now…Obama Administration…FOLLOW THE FREAK UP…!!!
Clean out that nest of vermin, and do it RIGHT!!!!
I wonder what Obama will say…
His own little mini resurrection day!
Our best to him and his family. Thank you Navy. Thank you United States Culture for turning out sailors like Captain Phillips (risking his life for that of his crew) and his crew (retaking the ship – unheard of by European and Asian Crewmen).
…and the best Navy in the world is allowed to do their job…
Great ending! Best wishes to the Captain and his family. Ditto the “Best Navy in the World”!
Now the debate is whether Barry or Hillary will be the first to call for the undocumented crewman to be given a driver’s license.
Second time is the charm.
Now, the bad news – the captured pirate looks to be headed to NY for a trial with a specified penalty of life in prison. I would have prefered death whilst still on the Bainbridge (or at least death after the trial).
How long before the tv movie is out?
US Navy 3 Somali Pirates 0
Gitmo for the hot shower, food, feces hurling, then on to an abandoned house in Sacramento and in-state tuition at the University of Oregon.
Meanwhile in other news Obama and the kids are playing with their new dog…
Maybe the Speaker of the House would like to give the remaining Pirate amnesty in Her neighborhood.
Keel haul the surviving pirate. Save tons of taxpayer money.
Ron Howard is making it – it’s called “Jumping the Shark”
He’ll take full credit and say it was due to his lack of saying anything the whole time.
The “surviving” pirate was not on the boat; he was their negotiator.
I don’t want anyone thinking the SEALs missed one
dj said:
My bet is that Obama will chastise the SEAL team for not allowing to give peace a chance.
Everyone’s your friend when you’re an AP reporter. As long as it gets you a great story and photo op.
Another bad day for those who believe that terrorists can be negotiated with.
A whole lot of liberals enjoy scoffing at the phrase “Peace Through Superior Firepower,” but, boy oh boy, does it work.
Great day for civilized nations, bad for pirates and terrorists.
Sure, this could have ended very quickly. But as far as I can tell, The Maersk is the only US-flagged merchant vessel in the Indian Ocean. The pirates merely stumbled onto it and were immediately over their heads. By trying to escalate this into an epic “us versus the Great Satan” incident, they drew in the Somalian government and foolishly raised the stakes for the entire piracy trade.
The world can now take what we and the French just did to the UN and because of those FBI charges filed yesterday, demand Somalia immediate arrest and render to some designated authority the rest of the pirates or face further consequences at the hands of the international community. This is no longer just about the Maersk but about the legitimacy of the Somalian government itself.
Tears now. Thank you God and our Navy for this wonderful Easter blessing.
L
D’oh bama will associate himself with the success of our fine armed forces…you can count on it.
Everyone with a brain will know the truth, though…
“Intelligence” operators have the negotiator pirate. Cool…
Now, clean them out….
I cannot wait to hear all the details about how these thugs were neutralized. I hope that North Korea and Tehran are paying attention as well.
Make the surviving pirate Walk the Plank!
What a great day for the USA! Thank you US Navy.
Out the back of a C-130, high above the Indian Ocean….
but ONLY after milking him for intel…
Bucknutty- thank you for the clarification. I didn’t think the SEALS missed one, I just figured he was cowering in the corner like the One.
Can we keel haul him after we get the info? This crap has to stop!
ACLU lawyers are already on it. This was nothing more than an unjustified, racist, knee-jerk, brutal attack on African citizens. The captured pirate must be released immediately, and the families of the dead pirates will have to be paid reparations for these vicious murders. The time is long past when the American military can be given a pass for its savage attacks on citizens of the World. Obama has declared that we are now part of a World society, and America will have to answer to international law.
Awesome! Here’s to you, all the men and women who bravely serve this country!
“I wonder what Obama will say…”
Something along the lines of “Because of my leadership abilities…”
I’m awaiting details. Want to know if Capt. Phillips made his move first, or the military first. In any case, very good news. And as long as the Navy is already there they should go on a pirate hunt.
Fox News has a photo of the captain after
Barry Ohis daring gave the SEALs a chance to rescue him.If we don’t do the follow-up on these vermin, what this will mean is that…
the pirates will harden their conduct.
We won’t get the same opportunity we did in this instance.
They will come on harder, more ruthlessly, and be much more inclined to shoot.
CLEAN THEM OUT…!!!
No need to kill the “negotiator,” just tell him the negotiations are over and toss him into the water. Why waste time and money on a show trial?
From what I read, we are already blocking the path home to the other pirates. They may be in the same situation as the Maersk pirates. I also understand we are buzzing the pirate camps with aircraft so we might expect some action there. I just hope they seize the “mother ship” that is vital for coordinating this activity.
It is now possible for a rebuked Somalian government to end piracy by cooperating in arresting these guys and allowing us to destroy their support facilities.
Ok, ok, it’s called “Jumping the SEAL” – still early here….
Way to Go, Navy, from a former WAVE!!!
I am sure that Chillery is trying to figure out how she can get credit as being part of the “solution,” not part of the “problem.”
Someone please assure me that the USS Boxer where Captain Phillips is now resting is not named after Barbara Boxer.
umm….
From what I’ve read, the “elders”…who are the de facto “government” refused to arrest or allow the arrest of the pirates. Which is why negotiations broke down…
Why would we need their “permission”…?!?!?
They are supporting crimes upon the high seas. We don’t need no stinking permission…!!!!
http://www.boxer.navy.mil/site%20pages/history.aspx
Barbara Boxer’s naval name-sake could only be the USS Stupidest Person In Congress
Time to juice-up the ol’ waterboard to find out where this surviving 4th bastard’s thieving friends are; it’s the Delta Force’s turn for some target practice!
James Greenidge
Queens, NY
I think Napalitano will announce conducting raids in this fashion in against administration policy…..
TAKE 2
It’s not about asking their “permission”. You choose a poor way to frame this situation. There hasn’t been a discernable defacto Somalian government for what must be 20 years now. They are an assembly of rival stone age clans who chose to present a group of “elders” (probably relatives of the pirates) to negotiate. Somalia is, however, recognized as a country in the international community. Civilized nations respect that.
We, it so happens, are a civilized nation. The only super power on earth. We gave them an opportunity to join the civilized world by appealing to them to work with us to end this situation. They chose instead to support the demands of the pirates so now we are free to pursue this further.
Knowing the knee-jerk brute force and military power are not the same thing. Might does not make right. Why dishonor the epic heroism of Captain Phillips with pointless macho bravado? We can only hope that put in his situation, we would have done the same thing. I wonder.
Rags:From what I’ve read, the “elders”…who are the de facto “government” refused to arrest or allow the arrest of the pirates. Which is why negotiations broke down…
um…you chose the “framing”…
not me, PP.
As usual, the United Nations is useless and worthless.
In case of emergency, dial 911 for USA, not the United Nations.
We should flatten the whole pirate hornets’ nest ASAP with shock and awe before the UN, ACLU, etc. start piping up.
No doubt Captain Phillips will be honored at the White House. Only thing is it’s a greater honor for our not-so- great leader to meet the Captain.
Boy, did our country need this massive morale B-12 shot after weakling Obama trashed us all over Europe.
Sheesh!
Well done U.S. Navy. You saved a very brave man. He is the epitome of what a Captain and a leader is.
Thank you, God!
Thank you, SEALs!
To those pirates, you are no Jack Sparrow!
Rags: give it up. Everyone here knows what I’m saying. It is childish to try to trick people into admitting they said something they didn’t say. I understand your point and you understand mine. You seem to be obsessed with winning arguments by reconstructing what others say to take on some other meaning. For instance:
He actually said that if we use your logic. You figure it out.
Self-sacrifice, to the point of being willing to give up your life for others, is the most touching thing in life. Unfortunately I can’t find it anywhere in the liberal playbook. How odd that is.
Cool! We don’t have to send in the Vikings after all.
That’s sounds spot on, are you on the ACLU’s early release list for their statements?
PP: “There hasn’t been a discernable defacto Somalian government for what must be 20 years now.”
PP: “It is now possible for a rebuked Somalian government to end piracy by cooperating in arresting these guys and allowing us to destroy their support facilities.”
So, what government was “rebuked”…?
who is going to “cooperate in arresting” pirates…?
and who was going to “allow us to destroy their support facilities”?
I never twist what people say. I just make them accountable for it.
Kennedy did say what you quoted, but the people on the ground knew what he was trying to say.
Just like everyone here who can read knows what you are trying to say.
We don’t need anyone’s “cooperation” or permission (i.e., “allowing”) to enforce the norms of civilization against a body of pirates and their supporters.
We just need resolve.
I was too subtle. The “headline” needs to be fixed.
Not MM’s favorite paper, but it seems to have the most detailed report.
Offered himself as a hostage to protect his crew? The guy’s a darned American Hero! What a great Easter miracle! I can’t wait for the details as to how it happened.
The Navy are also heros for making his rescue successful. Good job!
Mine is (and has been) flying! I’ve gone through 4 since September 11, 2001.
Back in the early 1990s my son was in the Navy, and involved in the Somalia mess.
He said there was NOTHING there, everything of any conceivable value had been stolen: windows, doors, flooring, pipes, plumbing, roofs, wiring, EVERYTHING. It was a total dump with nothing but dirt and shells of former buildings and men running around with AK-47 assault rifles shooting everything in sight.
Not much has changed beyond the idiots buying boats.
We should be over there in those waterways policing and peacekeeping, not killing people. Have any of you walked in their shoes? This is not how America does things anymore. This will only bring down America. We need change. Now. If the right wing is not defeated there will never be peace anywhere. See!
/sarc off
Oh, now the MSM is giving all the credit to Obama…as IF he had any real say in the matter. He was asked TWICE by the military folks to take decisive action, and it took Obama DAYS to finally give in.
Kudos to the Navy. President Obama? Not so much. He’s still the Poser in Chief.
I wonder how long until the left wing loons think we committed war crimes, or didn’t give the pirates their “day in court”? Hmmmm? I’m waiting?????
I am so thankful that hero Captain is safe.
Listened to the news conference on Fox, too busy to watch it – but seems NPR, CNN, CBS, etc.. all seem to want to argue the point as to whether the captain was in eminent danger before the Navy took out the 3 terrorists. And, wasn’t the 4th one on the Bainbridge negotiating – if so, what made the Navy feel the good captains’s life was in immediate threat?
Have I mentioned today how little respect I hold for the MSM media? By morning the story will be on the lines that the U.S. Navy murders 3 innocent fishermen from Africa, takes another hostage on board the Bainbridge. Kerry, Murtha, Durbin, and Kennedy all calling for hearings.
U.S.S Bainbridge -$163,000,000
Knight’s SR25 Sniper Rifle – $410.00
7.62mm matched sniper ammunition – $15.00
Three U.S. Navy Seals with clear shoots -Priceless
Yessiree…
we can count on the Somali pirates to have now learned their lesson…
“rebuked”, that’s what they were…
We can leave the rest to negotiations and due process, though our friends, the Somali “government”.
Well, we can all go back to our normal pursuits, earning what the government is working so hard to take away…
secure in the knowledge that nobody needs any of that bravado stuff.
After all, “Might does not make right. Why dishonor the epic heroism of Captain Phillips with pointless macho bravado”?
Go back to sleep…
24Klady: if the MSM takes establishes that as the narrative, it makes Obama look like a blood-thirsty war-monger. It is being reported that the Navy had orders to take out the pirates and get the captain back intact. If true, Obama comes out looking pretty good on this and we have a much-needed new American hero in Captain Phillips.
Whatever one’s political persuasion, this was a fantastic outcome. I’m relieved that Obama had the spine to do this.
Is it my imagination or has the Captain’s wife so far refused to thank the Navy for her husband’s rescue.
I’m
relievedappalled that Obama had the spine to do this only after days of equivocating, and facing being compared to Jimma Carta.I seem to have picked up my own personal troll.
Am I the only one disappointed that BHO didn’t offer to exchange himself as hostage for the Captain’s release… then BHO could have begun his talks with the hostage takers “without preconditions”…
QUESTION: How would he have gotten the Teleprompter aboard the hijackers skiff?
Now, continue on to kill these “pirates” whenever, wherever they are until they’re are all wiped out and get that PC nonsense of capturing them out of mind.
They have the new “blinders”, hi-tech, portables ready to deploy…
You’ll be amazed by how little it takes to feed them.
Once we start turning these bad guys into clouds of charged particles, maybe the rest will get the hint. I’ll grudgingly give His Most High Obamaship some credit for this. Hey, at least he didn’t forbid shooting the bad guys, though he’ll probably lose sleep tonight, fretting over the 3 dirt bags that are no longer needing oxygen.
What truly goads me is that Obama didn’t issue any statement AT ALL prior this rescue, even if it was a lame “we’re working through channels” thing. Like he didn’t even KNOWLEDGE the crisis, as though the “man” was either highly reluctant or grudging to rely on a military solution, or was so steeped into not looking a warlord in the slightest to his libbie friends. One real winner he!
James Greenidge
Queens, NY
Zoro, thanks for the amazing music link. I’ve got a big lump in my throat after listening to some of those gorgeous songs and will go back to them later.
Every day, I’m so proud to be an American, so proud of our armed forces, and in this particular instance, the Navy, the Special Forces and the Seals.
As for the terrorists/pirates, we put a boot up their a**! (Courtesy of Toby Keith).
*Thank God Captain Phillips made a safe escape this time; And thanks to the Navy personnel for laying down some serious hurt on those savages; Now is the time for some preventative action; Lay waste to all pirate nests along the coastline while assets are in place; Don’t miss this opportunity P-BO!
A hale and hearty ooo-rah for Captain Phillips.
Meanwhile Obama and Rodham are standing around with their thumb up their a$$ looking worthless and weak.
Neither one of them is capable of handling the 3 AM phone call.
When it comes to defending the citizens of this country, liberals are a joke.
But no one should be laughing.
Don’t forget the night vision goggles.
Targets were taken out “just after dark.”
The President and his buds have been trashing American exceptionalism for many months. Now we see American exceptionalism on display, the Navy’s, this captain, etc., AND you see the result. How many other countries have ships and crews STILL being held by these so called pirates?
Gotta wonder how the spin is going to unfold on this one….
The rescue happened in spite of BHO’s lack of concern.
I guess BHO’ll miss that photo op bowing down to the hijackers.
THIS is going to make certain heads spin – Halyburton to the rescue!!
And this London Times headline needs an update:
“US Navy misses chance to rescue American captain held hostage by pirates”
OOOOOOOO good one. I should have.
OBTW, I typo’ed the rifles cost. I meant to type $7,410.
Great show, Navy! Made for a real Happy Easter.
What movie? The Navy won. No self-respecting director/producer, in Hollywood today,wants a plot like that.
I am very relieved and happy to read about the ballsy captain’s escape/rescue.
He could’ve ended up shot and tossed over as shark food; but, instead, he survived. Thank God.
I hope our forces decimate the Somalis’ existing pirate areas.
“How long before the tv movie is out?”
Oooh, oooh, oooh! I nominate Ron Howard!
Whew! The USS Boxer wasn’t named after Barbara Boxer after all! It was named after a British ship captured during the War of 1812. What a relief! NOW my Easter is perfect.
Drat.
Just makes my heart swell with pride when I see Americans acting like Americans. All our service people have to be proud today. Thank you one and all, for all you do keeping us free.
Now if we only had a real American president and Congress.
Say what you want – Ole Blue Lips is the CIC and therefore must have authorized Deadly force (something I think we can all agree was necessary and should be continued). Carter would have left it in the hands of Allah and his minions (or crashed a helicopter trying).
Here is the difference – A Republican President (pick any one of them since 1950) is expected to do the right thing in a circumstance like this. A Democrat (again, pick any one since Truman) is congratulated when he does the right thing in a case like this..
OK, I will spell the moral out for you trolls… The moral is that no one ever expects Democrats to do the right thing – especially when the right thing may not poll well in San Francisco.
BTW – Obama needed direct action in this matter so he went to the professionals. Why can’t he consult professionals on the economy instead of devaluing the dollar and ruining Our Great Nation?
According to Blackfive, it sounds like the local officer saw an opportunity and took initiative. Not an active rescue attempt per some White House order.
I have to give credit where it’s due: my guess is that the rules of engagement had to go through the White House so Obama made the right decision to pull the trigger. The Navy guys were on the ball and did a great job.
The negotiations may well have been a show. The lifeboat they’re talking about is not an open dingy; it had an enclosed cabin so any action by the Navy could have gotten Captain Phillips (Hero!!!) shot.
That the Navy had authorization to take the pirates out when the opportunity presented itself is good enough for me. Now if we’ll just keep up a hard line.
Thrilled that the good guys are safe!
Well certainly now that it is successful is it any surprise that Jimmy C. Obama has taken credit for being in control?
Way to go Jimmy O!
That’s what I figured was the reason they didn’t blast away when Phillips jumped the first time. They probably couldn’t be certain that it was Phillips in the water. It could just as easily have been one of the pirates who fell in.
The good thing is they got it right in the end.
To God, thank you!
To Captain Phillips, thank you!
To the US Armed forces (All of them) thank you!
To the Big O in the Oval Office … still looks like you are batting O for O to me. Thanks for O!
Not too surprising, but there are serious inconsistencies in the reporting of what happened when.
They should let the captured pirate go….for $2 million.