AFR: Pirates seize Egyptian fishing boats off Somaliland
14 Apr 2009 2:54 AM
CAIRO, April 13 AFP - Pirates have seized two Egyptian fishing boats off the coast of the Somali breakaway region of Somaliland, a senior Egyptian official says.
"Our ambassador in Somalia has confirmed the boats were captured off the coast of Somaliland," Ahmad Rizk, deputy foreign minister for consular affairs, told reporters on Monday.
Rizk was unable to say when the boats, with a combined crew of 18 to 24 sailors, were captured, but said the Egyptian foreign ministry was investigating the incident.
Rizk earlier told state television Egypt's ambassador in Somalia said it was the first time boats were seized off the coast of Somaliland, which is considered one of the safest coastlines in the region.
Somali pirates have increased attacks in recent days despite the presence of an international task force gathered to defend shipping in one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.
Close to 150 attacks by Somali pirates on foreign ships were reported last year, most of them in the Gulf of Aden, where 16,000 ships bottleneck into the Red Sea each year on the busy trade route.
Somaliland, in north Somalia, proclaimed its independence in May 1991, five months after the start of civil war in Somalia.
