Somali pirates seize two ships

02/05/09 13:30 CET

Piracy

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Nineteen Somali pirates have been captured in a NATO led operation in the Gulf of Aden,

The group was detained after attempting to attack a Norweigan owned oil-tanker, the MV Kition; it radioed for help as the pirates approached.

Allied commanders on board the Portuguese warship Corte-Real answered the call and intercepted the pirates mothership.

After a high-speed chase they also recovered a small but significant cache of arms including rocket-propelled grenades

Heavily armed pirates from Somalia have been attacking vessel in Indian Ocean shipping lanes and the Gulf of Aden for more than year.

Hundreds of people have been taken hostage and millions of euros paid in ransoms.

In the latest incident, Somali pirates claim
to have seized two Ukrainian ships – one of which is said to be transporting UN vehicles bound for Iran.