Somalia’s transitional government called on Russia on Friday to explain why it had cut 10 Somali pirates adrift in the Gulf on Aden without navigation equipment or much hope of survival.
Russian forces last week stormed a hijacked oil tanker in a rescue operation that killed one pirate. Russia said 10 others arrested were later set loose aboard one of the small vessels they used in the attack.
A military official said they were stripped of their weapons and navigation equipment. Russian media later quoted a military source saying the pirates were now likely dead.
“We want an explanation from Russia on the death of our citizens,” Abdirasak Aden, an official at Somalia’s Information Ministry, told Reuters.
“They are gangs and there is no dispute on that, but they have to get a fair trial. Dumping them in international waters was not the only choice,” he said.
Somali pirates have made tens of millions of dollars from seizing merchant vessels for ransom in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. With foreign navies patrolling the busy shipping lanes, the pirates are striking further afield.
According to the International Maritime Bureau, Somali pirates accounted for more than half the reported piracy incidents worldwide in 2009 and nearly all of the hijackings, with 47 successful captures.
Source:Reuters
Somalia calls for Russian explanation on pirates
Published: May 14, 2010
