Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Pirates hit rough patch plying trade

French fend them off, Seychelles vessel captures them

Angela Doland Associated Press

PARIS – French soldiers successfully defended two fishing boats from capture by pirates in the Indian Ocean on Saturday, and 11 men suspected of involvement in the failed attack were pursued at sea and captured, officials said.

The chain of events illustrated the teamwork in the international community to crack down on piracy in the Indian Ocean, where pirates cruise the waters searching for boats to hijack for ransoms.

After French soldiers chased away the pirates, the coast guard of the Seychelles archipelago, south of where the attack took place, chased the assailants. The coast guard captured two boats – a small craft with eight men aboard and a larger ship carrying three that was the pirates’ suspected mothership, said Jacqueline Sherriff, chief press officer for the maritime unit of NATO in Northwood, outside London.

Piracy in the region soared as the rule of law crumbled in Somalia and organized criminal gangs ramped up the lucrative business of holding ships, their crews and cargos to ransom. After dozens of attacks last year, French President Nicolas Sarkozy called for tougher action against pirates.

France’s government has been stationing military escorts aboard French fishing boats off East Africa since July to protect them from gangs of Somali pirates. Saturday was the first time the soldiers used their weapons in such operations.