Somalia/Ukraine/Kenya

Hijacked ship carrying 30 tanks

Article published on the 2008-09-26 Latest update 2008-09-26 16:01 TU

The French yacht Ponant which was hijacked in April
(Photo: AFP)

Pirates off the Somali coast have captured a Ukrainian-owned ship carrying 30 tanks and other weaponry. Kenyan and Ukrainian authorities have confirmed that the Belize-flagged Faina was carring military hardware, including T-72 tanks and spare parts for the Kenyan military.

The Faina was headed for Mombasa with a crew of 17 Ukrainian nationals, three Russians and one Latvian when it was boarded on Thursday. Its whereabouts were unknown Friday.

Russia said Friday that it has sent a frigate to the area in response to the "rise in pirate attacks, including against Russian citizens".

Six Somalis were charged in a French court on Thursday with hijacking, robbery and hostage-taking.

The examining magistrate said that they have admitted their role in holding a French couple hostage after capturing a yacht.

They were captured off the Somali coast and flown to France after French special forces stormed the Carré d'As yacht on 15 September to rescue the couple. A seventh suspect was killed.

Somalia's waters are considered to be among the most dangerous in the world.

"The international community is struggling to come to terms with what to do in the absence of an effective government in Somalia," says Jaakie Sillers of the Institute for Security Studies in South Africa.

A UN Security Council resolution in June authorised international intervention for a six-month period, at the request of the Somali govenrment, he told RFI.