EU to Combat Somalia's Maritime Pirates for 2 More Years

Dec 29, 2010 — Early in December, the European Union decided its Naval Force (EUNAVFOR) would extend its counter-piracy operation in the Gulf of Aden and the Somali Basin until at least December 2012. EUNAVFOR's Operation ATALANTA, which marked its second anniversary on December 8, is primarily responsible for protecting United Nations World Food Program (WFP) vessels, but has also come to the aid of many merchant ships transiting the dangerous pirate-infested waters.

Source: Planet Data

U.S. Coast Guard Rescues 80 Haitian Migrants

(U.S. Coast Guard) "The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Escanaba repatriated 80 Haitian migrants to Cap Haitien, Haiti, Tuesday. The Haitian migrants were rescued from their overloaded and unstable 40-foot wooden sailing vessel approximately four miles south of Matthewtown, Bahamas, Sunday, after being located by a Coast Guard Air Station Detroit, Mich., MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew deployed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba."

Source: Planet Data

Final Hours of Deepwater Horizon

Dec 27, 2010 — Anonymous points us to a "really good, in-depth" New York Times article (registration) about the blowout of the Deepwater Horizon offshore oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico this year. Our submitter notes that the piece "gives me a stronger perspective on what happened and, to a certain degree, why."

Source: Planet Data

South Pacific Cyclone Season Alert from U.S. State Department

Dec 24, 2010 — The U.S. State Department on December 23 issued a Travel Alert warning about the ongoing threat of cyclones originating in the South Pacific region during the active December - April timeframe. The alert covers travel to Australia, Fiji, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, New Zealand, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu, as well as the territories of French Polynesia, New Caledonia, and Wallis and Futuna islands.

In the full Travel Alert, the State Department warns about possible post storm security threats and dangerous conditions, and urges U.S. citizens in the region to monitor local weather reports and take other appropriate action as needed.

Source: Planet Data

Russia May Rejoin NATO's Mediterranean Anti-Terror Patrols

Dec 23, 2010 — Russia's RIA Novosti reports (link below) Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said on Thursday that the Russian navy resume participation in NATO's Active Endeavour anti-terrorism operations in the Mediterranean Sea. The Kremlin withdrew from the international effort this past summer.

Source:Planet Data