A US destroyer intercepted a hijacked Israeli-managed oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden earlier Sunday, freed the crew, and took the Houthi pirates into custody. My colleague Jeff Charles covered the piracy in this post, High Seas Drama: Another Israeli Tanker Seized by Unidentified Attackers Near Yemen.
Shortly after dawn local time, the Central Park, a small Liberian-flagged oil and chemical tanker managed by an Israeli company registered in London, sent a distress call saying it was being boarded by armed men. The USS Mason, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, was operating in the area. According to reports, the Mason directed the crew to take refuge and not turn the ship over to the pirates. The Mason is part of the USS Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group; Pentagon Issues 'Prepare to Deploy' Orders to 2,000 US Troops – RedState.
According to Fox News's Jennifer Griffin:
The crew had locked themselves in the Citadel (safe room). A Japanese destroyer assisted the USS Mason with the interdiction. 2 Chinese Navy warships in the area did not render assistance. The gunmen tried to beat down the door to the safe room but failed. The hijackers exited the vessel and were making their way back to the shores of Yemen when the US Navy personnel pursued and arrested them. Warning shots were fired by the U.S. Navy personnel and a U.S. helicopter gunship flew cover.
There are some interesting bits in this story. The two PLAN warships that ignored the distress call are part of a six-ship flotilla that rotates through the Persian Gulf, "The six warships are the Type 052D guided missile destroyers Zibo and Urumqi, the Type 054A guided missile frigates Jingzhou and Linyi, and the Type 903 integrated supply ships Qiandaohu and Dongpinghu." These ships seem to be part of a PLAN operation to get the Chinese Navy blue water experience and build proficiency in underway replenishment and refueling operations. The fact that they refused to acknowledge a distress call simply underscores the hostile nature of Chinese presence in any environment: political, economic, military, or academic.
The fact that the USS Mason was cleared to render aid may mark an escalation in how the Navy addresses the war by Houthi pirates on ships with any connection to Israel. The Navy has become more aggressive in engaging Houthi missiles and drones, so upping the pressure on their piracy operation would be a logical move.