The Associated Press
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
A court has ordered nine Somali men to stand trial in Rome next
month on charges of piracy for an alleged attack on an Italian cargo
vessel off Somalia in October.
British and United States forces, patrolling the waters
as part of a counter-piracy task force, freed the MV Montecristo in a
dramatic rescue, and handed the alleged assailants over to Italian
authorities.
The ship had been hauling scrap iron to Vietnam when it was attacked.
Judge Valerio Savio on Monday set the trial date for
March 23, the first such trial in Italy. Charges include piracy and the
detention of war weapons for terrorism. The British Defense Ministry had
said that a "large cache" of weapons was seized, including
rocket-propelled grenades.