Pirates loot fishing boats off Guyana, leave crews adrift

GEORGETOWN (AP) — Sea pirates hijacked and robbed two local fishing boats off the coast of violence-wracked Guyana a day after top officials called for tougher penalties to stem maritime piracy, police said Sunday.

The boats' crews were left adrift in the open Atlantic after masked gunmen carried away engines, fuel, fish hauls, nets and other supplies Saturday, Guyanese police said.

Passing boats later rescued the crews. No arrests have been made. A spate of recent sea attacks have left six Guyanese fishermen dead in the past year as pirates target fishermen for ransom or loot.

Interior Minister Clement Rohee on Friday introduced legislation proposing life sentences and a mandatory US$1,000 fine for convicted pirates.

Anyone convicted of murder during an attack in Guyana's territorial waters would receive the death penalty. Parliament is likely to debate the bill in late July.

Guyana recently helped fishermen install GPS devices to track their boats and urged them to contribute to a common fund to replace equipment stolen by sea bandits. Neighbouring Suriname increased coastal patrols this year.

An annual report from the International Maritime Bureau said pirate attacks rose ten percent worldwide in 2007.

Iran won't be allowed to block Gulf - US Navy

DUBAI (Reuters) — The United States and its allies will not allow Iran to hamper shipping in the Gulf, the waterway that carries crude from the world's largest oil exporting region to the world, the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet said.

The head of Iran's Revolutionary Guards said in remarks published on Saturday that Tehran would impose controls on shipping in the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz if Iran was attacked.

"They will not be allowed to close it (the strait)," Vice-Admiral Kevin Cosgriff told a media briefing in Bahrain, according to a Fifth Fleet spokesman.

Cosgriff, the commander of the Bahrain-based fleet, was speaking about an "interest shared with international community to keep that vital waterway free for shipping", the spokesman said. Oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway at the mouth of the Gulf separating Iran from the Arabian Peninsula, accounts for about 40 percent of the world's traded oil supply.

Oil hit a new record of $143.54 a barrel on Monday on rising tension between Iran and Israel over Tehran's nuclear programme which the United States and the Jewish state say is meant to build an atomic bomb. Iran says the programme is peaceful.

Boat maker Brunswick to shut plants

LAKE FOREST, Illinois (AP) — Brunswick Corp. said it will cut at least 1,000 more jobs and close four plants as it tries to ride out an economic downturn that's stalled sales for its recreational products.

The suburban Chicago manufacturer notified employees that it will reduce its hourly and salaried work force by 1,000 jobs, and the company said it may slash up to an additional 1,700 employees as further cost-cutting initiatives are completed.

Executives say they hope the moves will reduce costs by $300 million this year. Brunswick, which manufactures boats, marine engines, fitness equipment and bowling and billiards products, had about 27,000 employees at the end of last year.

"In light of the long-owned difficult economic conditions existing in the United States we are downsizing Brunswick so that we can be profitable even if these conditions continue and be positioned to go on even if these conditions improve," Chief Executive Dustan McCoy told investors during a conference call.

The sluggish U.S. economy has dampened the U.S. boating industry, which saw retail sales fall 21 percent in the first quarter alone after reaching their lowest level in decades last year.

Brunswick executives said Thursday they were worried the slowdown could soon spread overseas, where robust sales have helped boost earnings.

The company already had laid off about 1,500 marine employees and announced plans to close eight boat plants.

Greek passenger ship hits a rock in Aegean

ATHENS (AP) — A Greek passenger ship hit a rock Saturday and was slightly damaged in the eastern Aegean, but was able to continue to a nearby port under its own power, the Ministry of Merchant Marine said.

The ship, "Theophilos," was carrying 475 passengers when it crashed into the rock near Oinousses island, about 14 miles from its destination port on Chios island, the ministry said.

Ship passengers told Greek TV stations that no one was hurt, but that the rock had left a gash in the ship's hull from which oil appeared to be leaking.

They could not say how much was leaking, and authorities did not comment about the oil or give details about the ship's damages.

The crew initially directed passengers to lifeboats, but then called off the evacuation when it became clear the ship could proceed on its own. It was directed to anchor just outside the small port in Oinousses, just over a mile away, where Coast Guard divers would examine the hull breach. The ship had been ferrying people to Chios from the island of Lesbos.