Germany to Counter Piracy on Land

12.05.2012 German parliament on May 11 adopted a bill allowing Bundeswehr to hold military operations against Somali pirates not only at sea but on land too, reports DW-WORLD.

Henceforth, counter-piracy is sanctioned not only within territorial waters of Somalia but on the shore. That decision was supported by 305 out of 570 members of German parliament. Warships and helicopters are entitled to attack pirate dens located up to 2 km inland.

German foreign minister Guigo Westerwelle stated that his country had no plans to conduct large-scale land operations against pirates, and that decision was primarily related to search-and-rescue missions in Somalia.

In recent years Somali pirates have become one of the primary threats to shipping in western part of the Indian Ocean. The last incident happened on May 10 when pirates captured a Greek oil tanker.