NATO warships and helicopters pursued Somali pirates for seven hours after they attacked a Norwegian tanker, NATO spokesmen said yesterday, in a high-speed chase that ended when warning shots were fired at the pirates' skiff.
Pirates attempted to capture the MV Front Ardennes at 6 pm Saturday and were apprehended seven hours later, said Commander Chris Davies.
The officials say the pirates fled but were hunted down in the dark by a Canadian ship WMCS Winnipeg, which was escorting a World Food Program delivery ship through the Gulf of Aden.
Forces aboard that ship briefly detained seven gunmen. The Associated Press quotes a NATO spokesman as saying the pirates were released because they cannot be prosecuted under Canadian law, because they did not attack Canadian citizens or interests and the crime was not committed on Canadian territory.
On Saturday, Dutch commandos serving with the Nato anti-piracy operation freed 20 pirate captives from Yemen.
In that incident, too, the raiders were released.
The pirates' release underscores the difficulties navies have in fighting piracy off the coast of lawless Somalia. Most of the time foreign navies simply disarm and release the pirates they catch because of legal complications and logistical difficulties in transporting pirates and witnesses to court.
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