Somali pirates seize French ship

SOMALI PIRATES SEIZE MINI CRUISESHIP

SOMALI pirates who hijacked a luxury French-flag mini sailing cruise ship on Friday have opened fire at local militia who stopped them entering a local harbour, killing two militiamen. French forces are said to be in the area and a French naval vessel is at the scene.

The luxury yacht-style vessel had no passengers on board when it was seized and the Ponant's 30-strong crew are now hostages. The vessels owner, a subsidiary of French shipping giant CMA CGM, says that the crew are unharmed.

French officials are in contact with the pirates while about 10 specialist police officers trained to deal with hijackings and hostage situations, were reportedly expected to land in Djibouti today.

The vessel is reported to be moored at Garacade, near Eyl in the northern region of Puntland.

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