This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/africa/8005730.stm

The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Dutch forces free pirate captives Dutch forces free pirate captives
(about 2 hours later)
Dutch commandos have freed 20 people who had been captured by Somali pirates after the raiders attacked a Greek-managed tanker, Nato says. Dutch commandos have freed 20 fishermen whose vessel was hijacked by Somali pirates and used to launch an attack against a tanker in the Gulf of Aden.
The captives, Yemeni fishermen, were freed as the Dutch forces captured seven pirates in the Gulf of Aden. The captives, all Yemeni, were freed when Dutch forces chased pirates back to the fishing dhow by following the smaller craft used in the attack.
They were aboard a pirate "mother ship" from which smaller craft attack commercial vessels. The dhow was being used by the pirates as a "mother ship" from which to launch armed attacks on commercial shipping.
The captured pirates are alleged to have attacked the tanker using assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades. Meanwhile, officials suspect a Belgian-registered ship may have been attacked.
A Dutch warship from the Nato force responded to a distress call from the tanker and saw the pirates fleeing toward a Yemeni fishing trawler, Nato spokesman Alexandre Santos Fernandes said. The Dutch took action after receiving a distress call from the Greek-managed tanker.
Nato troops boarded the vessel and freed the 20 Yemenis who, he says, had been held hostage since Sunday. Intercepting the pirates, the troops then boarded the fishing vessel and freed the 20 Yemenis.
They had been held hostage since Sunday, Nato spokesman Alexandre Santos Fernandes said.
"We have freed the hostages, we have freed the dhow and we have seized the weapons," he told the Reuters news agency.
The pirates were set free, the Associated Press news agency reports, because under Dutch law they could not be held at sea under the circumstances in which they were captured.The pirates were set free, the Associated Press news agency reports, because under Dutch law they could not be held at sea under the circumstances in which they were captured.
Meanwhile, reports say there has been no communication with a Belgian-registered dredging vessel, the Pompei, since it sent two alarm signals early on Saturday.
The ship, with 10 crew including two Belgians, was about 600 km (373 miles) from the Somali coast and heading for the Seychelles. Satellite pictures show that the ship is not moving.
"We suspect it was hijacked by Somali pirates," Belgian official Peter Mertens, said.
Somali pirates continue to hold more than 280 crew members and 15 cargo ships.