You’ve heard by now: Navy personnel shot and killed three pirates, wounded and captured the fourth, and thus rescued a U.S. citizen and cargo ship captain those pirates were holding hostage off the Somalia coast.
The Washington Post called it “an early military victory for Obama.” The Post’s Michael Shear writes:
For President Obama, last week’s confrontation with Somali pirates posed similar political risks to a young commander in chief who had yet to prove himself to his generals or his public.
But the result — a dramatic and successful rescue operation by U.S. Special Operations forces — left Obama with an early victory that could help build confidence in his ability to direct military actions abroad.
Questions:
If this was a military victory – as opposed to a police action – then can we accurately say we’re at war with piracy?
If this was a military victory – as opposed to a police action – what will we do with the prisoner, who doesn’t seem to meet the definition of POW? Keep him? Try him? If so, where? And for what?
Gitmo, perhaps?
Hey, good for President Obama for authorizing force, and good for the Navy for using that force effectively and successfully. And note: it’s a newspaper calling this a “military victory.” Has anybody in the Obama administration called it that? My brief jog through the internet reveals nothing to suggest so.
So, I guess, whatev. I’m just a blogger blogging about a Post editor being sloppy with his verbiage. Still: where is that prisoner? And what are we going to do with him?
Via Memeorandum.