The lone survivor , Wong Yu ( ) , confessed Reveal_secret to membership of the gang of four pirates who attempted the hijacking Committing_crime ( then simply labelled Labeling `` piracy '' ) , met fierce resistance during which the pilot was shot Use_firearm , but survived by jumping Self_motion out the emergency exit just before the plane hit Attack the water .

The western nations built Building ever more sophisticated and expensive ships which the Barbary pirates could not match Competition in numbers or technology .

The `` Maersk Alabama '' hijacking Kidnapping was a series of maritime events that began Process_start on 8 April 2009 with four pirates in the Indian Ocean seizing the cargo ship southeast of Eyl , Somalia .

It was the sixth vessel in a week to be attacked Attack by pirates who had previously extorted Kidnapping ransoms in the tens of millions of dollars .

The Mexican Congress passed Motion_directional the Tornel Decree , declaring Expressing_publicly that any foreigners fighting Hostile_encounter against Mexican troops `` will be deemed Coming_to_believe pirates and dealt with as such , being citizens of no nation presently at war with the Republic and fighting Hostile_encounter under no recognized Know flag . ''

The cause of the U.S. participation was pirates from the Barbary States seizing Committing_crime American merchant ships and holding Hold the crews for ransom , demanding Request the U.S. pay Commerce_pay tribute to the Barbary rulers .

The Barbary pirates demanded Request tribute from American merchant vessels in the Mediterranean Sea .

If they failed to pay Commerce_pay , the pirates would attack Attack the ship , take Removing their goods , and often enslave Conquering crew members or hold Hold them ransom .

By the 16th century , the Ottomans had become Becoming a serious threat to the European powers , with Ottoman ships sweeping away Venetian possessions in the Aegean and Ionian seas and Ottoman-supported Barbary pirates seizing Spanish possessions in the Maghreb .

Fifteen leagues from Matanzas , Cuba , a large band of pirates captured Conquering several vessels and held Conquering them for ransom .

upon hearing Know of the pirate attacks Attack , `` alligator '' under lieutenant william howard allen rushed Self_motion to the scene to rescue Rescuing the vessels and seize Control the pirates .

upon arriving at Arriving the bay where the pirates were said Communication to be , `` alligator Hold '' dispatched Sending boats to engage Hostile_encounter the enemy vessels , as the water was too shallow for the warship to engage them directly .

although the navy was able to force Causation the pirates into abandoning GiveUp `` revenge '' , the buccaneers managed to fight Hostile_encounter their way out of the bay and inflict Causation seven casualties Death .

With their commander mortally wounded Bodily_harm , the boats ceased Process_end pursuit Self_motion of the pirates , but were able to recover Recovering the vessels that had been held Hold in the bay .

It was captured Arrest by the Spanish , who wanted to try the men onboard ( many of whom were American and British citizens ) as pirates and execute them .