French Naval Forces Nab Pirates at Sea

There are various news reports of activity off Somalia today, looks like the French are still active.

The French Navy intercepted the pirates in two small boats about 115 miles (185 kilometers) from the nearest coast, finding anti-tank missiles, other weapons and ship boarding gear on the boats.

The nine were handed over to Somali officials, and French officials received assurances that the prisoners would be treated according to international conventions.

Another news report quotes the state minister of Puntland Abdi Qadir Yusuf as saying “We received nice (criminal) pirates from French navy forces today and we will put them on trial soon.”

This gives us something else to observe, namely: the justice system of the Puntland government and how they deal with piracy. The results could have international impact to how the detention of pirates is handled in the future.

Well done to the French Navy, who continues to fight piracy with the vigilance necessary for long term success.