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Somali Pirates Seize German Ship, 11 Crew

By the Associated Press

Posted May 6, 2009 8:59 AM CDT

(AP) – Somali pirates have hijacked a German cargo ship carrying a crew of 11 in the Gulf of Aden, the latest seizure by high-seas bandits who are holding hundreds of merchant mariners hostage, the AP reports.The MV Victoria was captured yesterday 75 miles south of Yemen. There is no information on the condition of the Romanian crew aboard the Antigua and Barbuda-flagged ship.

About 250 sailors from countries around the world being held hostage in the Gulf of Aden and directly off Somalia's eastern coast. An international flotilla of warships has been patrolling nearby waters, and has halted many attacks, but experts say the area is simply too vast to stop all pirate attacks. On Monday, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called for the creation of an international piracy court.

A South Korean sniper aims at a pirate ship.
A South Korean sniper aims at a pirate ship.   (AP Photo)
A pirate ship.
A pirate ship.   (AP Photo)
Map of the Horn of Africa region spots the approximate location of a German ship seized by pirates and shows international shipping routes and 2009 pirate attacks.
Map of the Horn of Africa region spots the approximate location of a German ship seized by pirates and shows international shipping routes and 2009 pirate attacks.   (AP Photo)
The German warship Rheinland-Pfalz docks at the port in Mombasa, Kenya.
The German warship Rheinland-Pfalz docks at the port in Mombasa, Kenya.   (AP Photo)
Capt. Richard Phillips of the Maersk Alabama, left, and Michael Perry, chief engineer, testify during a hearing on piracy on Capitol Hill.
Capt. Richard Phillips of the Maersk Alabama, left, and Michael Perry, chief engineer, testify during a hearing on piracy on Capitol Hill.   (AP Photo)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 3 comments
riffran
May 7, 2009 9:17 AM CDT
so you want to REWARD criminal behavior because they are just doing the best they can?....What a load of drivel.....Sure help out the failed country..Ok I'm good with that....but "just pay the minimal ransom"????? hell no put a bullet in the melon...make the price of thuggery too dear to pay.....
selva
May 6, 2009 9:13 AM CDT
So, government to protect capitalist interests? We want the government to spend more money protecting private companies from piracy? How about treating the root of piracy, extreme famine and poverty in a failed state. Let these multinational Corporations pay the minimal ransoms being demanded of them and get on with business as usual. These pirates have no alternatives, and we want to kill them off... Sweet.
OWLWOMANXXXX
May 6, 2009 2:03 AM CDT
Richards is right....those ships need to be armed by professionals

Copyright 2012 Newser, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. AP contributed to this report.

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