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Friday, December 05, 2008
COPENHAGEN, Dec 4 (Reuters) - A Danish warship rescued a group of suspected pirates in the Gulf of Aden on Thursday after receivnig a distress signal from the ship, which was floundering in heavy seas, the Danish Navy said.
The Naval Operational Command said the Absalon was bound by international law to help the men and that Danish sailors had uncovered a number of weapons onboard the vessel similar to those often used in pirate attacks on merchant ships.
"Due to the weather, it was not possible to take the troubled ship in tow and it was destroyed in the interest of shipping safety," the Navy said in a statement.
The men were later handed over to authorities in Yemen.
A surge in piracy this year in waters off Somalia has pushed up insurance costs, brought pirate gangs tens of millions of dollars in ransoms and prompted foreign navies to rush to the area to protect merchant shipping.
Pirates are holding about a dozen ships and nearly 300 crew. Among the captured vessels is Ukraine's MV Faina and a Saudi tanker loaded with $100 million of oil. (Reporting by Kim McLaughlin; Editing by Matthew Jones).
Source: Reuters, Dec 04, 2008