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SHIMBIRO, SOMALIA- DECEMBER 2007 .Preparing to depart at dusk, crew members roll barrels of petrol along the sandy beach readyto load onto waiting doons moored out in choppy waters. Supplies of fuel must be enough tocover the return journey from Yemen, and allow for a couple of days extra mileage should theboats have to evade capture, or make detours if they are spotted on their approach to the farshore. Weapons, tools, and a five day supply of food and water are also carried on board by thecrews. For them, each journey across the Gulf of Aden also carries a risk, and so they spendthe previous days in Bossaso with the smugglers getting drunk, chewing qat, smoking hashishand in bed with their wives or prostitutes. By the time they are ready to depart, most are highand edgy, wielding their power with great bravado in front of the terrified tahrib whose livesare at their mercy. (KEYSTONE/NOOR/Alixandra Fazzina)