International Operations

HMCS Iroquois’ boarding party hears Iraqi sailors tell their story

Lt (N) Morgan Bailey

With the fall of Iraq’s former regime, the tides may be turning in the region’s illegal oil smuggling industry.  Recently, HMCS IROQUOIS’ boarding party approached a known “bandit” vessel of interest destined not for the usual suspected ports; rather, the scrap yards in India and Pakistan.  What made this experience particularly poignant, however, was the unexpected interaction of the vessel’s crew.

Each boarding normally begins as a riddle with team members, shipping and intelligence personnel working quickly together to figure out a vessel’s history, legitimacy of sailors and intended destination.

The boarding party team noted during preliminary background checks that although this vessel had passive defensive capability, normally to avoid piracy, none were used during the consensual boarding.  Instead, a crew full of jubilant sailors welcomed the team aboard the vessel, which was to become a significant moment.

“I knew this experience was going to be special when the crew identified themselves as Iraqis,” says Lt (N) Brian Foxton, boarding party team leader.  “Once we determined that they were legitimate sailors, we were able to breathe a little easier,” he says just days after US-led coalition forces entered Baghdad’s city center.

The Iraqi seamen appeared to be the “happiest crew I’ve ever seen,” says Lt (N) Foxton.  “These guys were ecstatic.  They told me that they were from ‘The free country of Iraq’ asking if we’d heard about them.”  The Iraqi master indicated that the vessel, which had been a known smuggler of illicit oil, was now being sent for scrap due to the declining market, says Lt (N) Foxton.

Master Seaman (MS) Shane Allan, Naval Electronics Technician (Tactical), and two-tour boarding party team veteran, noted that all crewmembers seemed in good spirits and were told they were very “relieved that the regime had fallen.”  The vessel’s crew told the boarding party team about various family tragedies seen throughout their lives under former Iraqi dictator, Saddam Hussein.  “It changed my whole view on the war,” says MS Allan.

Ordinary Seaman (OS) Glenn Trane, Naval Communicator, says “they really had a sparkle in their eye as they described how much they looked forward going back to Iraq to begin their lives again with new freedoms.”

This experience stood out in the 20 or so boardings the team has carried out this month since entering Task Force 151’s area of operations in the Gulf of Oman.  For the first time in 13 years of UN sanctions, sailors involved in the illicit oil trade offered a first-hand account of the business and their perceptions of what it would become in the coming months. Instead of being evasive, as perhaps would have been expected a month ago, the Iraqi sailors felt it was now time to tell their story.

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