24 August 2009
Naval patrols fired warning shots to stop suspected pirates in the Gulf of Aden at the weekend, later seizing ladders, rifles and rocket-propelled grenades.
The European Union Naval Force for Somalia said in a news release that a Japanese maritime patrol aircraft spotted a skiff on Saturday which was carrying seven people, a ladder and large amounts of fuel. The skiff was about 80 nautical miles east of Aden and five nautical miles from merchant shipping.
A Norwegian warship gave chase and a Dutch warship sent a helicopter to follow the skiff. When the occupants of the skiff tried to get away, the helicopter crew fired warning shots.
Norwegian sailors using fast, rigid-hulled inflatable boats boarded the skiff and seized and disposed of the weapons. But, according to the EU force's news release, "due to the lack of positive evidence of a pirate attack, the skiff and its crew were finally released."
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